This Week's Greeter - Jim Wells

I am a part of a burgeoning demographic which is shaping and influencing our country as a great resource that can still make a difference. I am a product of a family of eight children, as my father served in the United States Air Force after serving our country during World War II. He chose to stay in the service as a career option: therefore I grew up living in several locales throughout the country, mostly in the southeastern states as well as overseas in Tripoli, Libya - all experiences which helped me develop an appreciation for our freedom and for varying cultures.

 

I graduated from the University of Houston in 1975 with a Bachelor of Science in Education and obtained my Masters in Educational Administration from Sam Houston State University in 1982. I taught and coached in the Spring Branch Independent School District for four years and then spent 33 years working in the Cypress Fairbanks Independent School district as a coach, English teacher, assistant principal, curriculum coordinator and principal ( I served as the inaugural principal of Thornton Middle School for nine years and principal of Cypress Creek High School for ten years, retiring in 2012 with 37 years of service in education). Since my retirement, I have served as an educational consultant, working with the Southern Regional Education Board out of Atlanta Georgia, most recently doing contract work in school systems in Washington state. While at Cypress Creek High School, I created six career academies during our reconstruction phase in 2009 and implemented 64 programs of study which gave students the option to obtain college credits toward degree plans or to obtain any one of twenty industry standard certifications which made them work ready, or both. This was in essence an early version of what House Bill 5 is purporting in its most recent passage by the Texas Legislature. In 2011 Cypress Creek High School won state recognition in the High Schools That Work Network( a division of the Southern Regional Education Board) for its efforts in impleme nting career pathways and viable postsecondary options for its graduates. We were also continually one of America's top schools on the Newsweek Index of most challenging High Schools based on our Advanced Placement participation rates and results, making the "America's Best High Schools" list nine out of ten years, the only Cy Fair high school to continually achieve this honor. Even in retirement, I continue to have a passion for promoting College and career readiness for our graduates and continue to be involved in this worthwhile endeavor.