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| | | (SPECIAL/www.northfulton.com)BRANCH (click for larger version) | |
March 03, 2008
FORSYTH COUNTY - The Forsyth County Board of Education named Jason Branch as the new principal of South Forsyth High School beginning in school year 2008-2009.
Current principal Gary Davidson was recently appointed Principal on Special Assignment while preparing to open the soon-to-be-built Lambert High School.
Branch comes to Forsyth by way of Douglas County, Georgia where he has been employed as principal of Chapel Hill High School for the past two years.
"I am honored to be a part of the Forsyth County School System family. It is my firm belief that this is the best system in the state of Georgia and has the potential to be one of the best in the nation," said Branch.
"Chapel Hill High School in Douglas County has about 2000 students, whereas South Forsyth has 2600 students, so that's quite an increase in the size of the student body," said Branch.
Branch's accomplishments at Chapel Hill are impressive include leading an increase of 50 percent in advance placement offerings and a decrease in student disciplinary incidents. Chapel Hill has also significantly improved overall student academic achievement and won three state championships.
Branch has been involved in education for ten years. He was an English teacher and basketball coach at Glenn Academy in Brunswick, Georgia for several years. Branch later accepted the Assistant Principal position at McEachern High School in Cobb County.
"McEachern was the largest high school in the state at that time," said Branch,
The most rewarding thing about working in education is "absolutely, the students," said Branch.
"Watching them grow and learn is incredibly rewarding," he said. "You certainly need to be a kid person to stay enthusiastic in the education arena."
Being a principal definitely means working long hours. Although he doesn't have an overabundance of free time, Branch pursues a few hobbies.
"I enjoy athletics. I play a little golf. The English teacher in me loves to read and my fiancée and I like to travel. Our most recent trip was a weekend jaunt to Charleston," said Branch.
Branch's transition to Forsyth County officially begins over the summer, but unofficially, he has already begun getting acclimated to the area.
"I went to meet the faculty at South Forsyth last Wednesday and I'm going to some basketball games this winter," he said. "Plus, we need to find a place to live, so we will be house-hunting in the area as well."
The summer of 2008 will be a whirlwind of activity for the amiable Branch.
"I have my last day at Chapel Hill on June 3 and I start working at South Forsyth on July 1st," he said. "And in-between, I'm getting married."
Being such a self-proclaimed "kid person", Branch envisions children of his own one day. Until then, he'll just help take care of the 2,600 students at South Forsyth.
- www.northfulton.com
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