Eric Mackey hired as Associate Director of SSA. Photo: Anita Kilgore
“I feel really led to do this,” said Hammett. “Kind of like six years ago, when they called and asked if I would serve on the board of education. I worked for 14 years. I came back as the head football coach, and then I was the assistant principal for nine years and the principal for one. Both my children went to school here. I am from Jacksonville. My dad was a board member for 20 years.
“You know, there is a lot of history. When they asked me if I would do it then I just felt like it was a chance to give back. And this is even more than a chance to give back; this is a chance to make a huge difference. I honestly believe doors are opened for a reason and I just feel like this is an opportunity given to me for a reason and I just hope I can make the difference I intend to make.”
“Ray just has a vast amount of experience,” said Lori Tippets, president of the Board of Education. “As a board, we could not think of a better person. Between his current work in Georgia and what he did in Jacksonville, it really was just something that fell into our lap and we are happy it did. Having somebody who is as well respected and knowledgeable about our school system, Ray has also served on our board for six years, was a definite plus. His name is well respected here in Jacksonville and as an educator is name is extremely well respected.”
Hammett has spent the last six years working in Georgia. He currently is a graduation coach at Rockmart High School, a position he has held for three years. Before that he worked in the Central Office at Cedartown.
Tippets did acknowledge the fact that Hammett is a member of the board that is in charge of selecting a replacement.
“It’s a little bit nontraditional for us to take somebody like this without doing a search, but when we have somebody with Ray’s qualifications come forward and say he would be happy to be the superintendent, we just felt that even with a search, we couldn’t do any better than Ray Hammett,” said Tippets. “Dr. Mackey highly, highly recommended him and coming from somebody with the caliber of Dr. Mackey, that meant a lot.”
Hammett also respects Mackey’s work he has done with the school system.
“I am following Eric Mackey, who I think as done a magnificent job,” said Hammett. “That makes it easy. His leadership style and my leadership style are very, very similar.”
Last week, Mackey announced that he would be stepping down at the end of June as superintendent of the Jacksonville City School system to join the School Superintendents of Alabama as associate director starting July 1.
Mackey first served in Jacksonville’s school system as principal of Kitty Stone Elementary School. He then went on to serve as superintendent of Jacksonville City Schools for eight years.
Mackey has worked with the SSA in the past. He served as the SSA’s Legislative Chair in 2007-08 and currently serves as president of SSA with his term ending in June of this year.
With the new role comes a new responsibility. He will coordinate the new Superintendent and Executive Coaching Institute, a program that he has worked with since its inception. He will collaborate with the Alabama Department of Education, monitor the work of the Alabama Board of Education and will coordinate the work of the Superintendent Leaders Network with A+. As associate director, he will also provide assistance to superintendents across the state.
Mackey said Jacksonville is a great place to live and work and he hates to leave.
“If I could pick up this town and move it with me, I would,” said Mackey. “If it had not worked out and I would have stayed in Jacksonville, I would have been very happy to stay right here. I love what I do and I love Jacksonville. There is not another place better to be a school superintendent or to go to school. But, times change and I felt like it was a good time to apply for the position and obviously the search committee and the board of directors felt it was a good match on their end because it was a unanimous choice.
“We have the best kids in the world. We just have the best mix of people in the world here in Jacksonville. Sure, some of them may have disagreed with me at times, and I have disagreed with some of them at times. Everything doesn’t always go smooth, but that is part of the process. As long as we all have the same goal in mind you work together and the people here do understand it. It’s about the kids, not about us.”
Mackey said the culmination of the thing he is most proud is still ahead.
“Trying to raise the rigger of our curriculum and expand our AP program, that has been the thing I wanted to do,” said Mackey. “Well, we just found out that we have been accepted into the A+ College Ready AP Grant Program. We are going to be the only 4A school in the state that is going to be in the mix with this elite group of 6A schools. The official presentation is with the governor next Wednesday.”
Mackey will leave an impression on Jacksonville schools, not only by the improved curriculum, but by the educators as well: Over 50 percent of the teachers at the city’s schools were recommended by Mackey.
“I think we have put a good plan in place to go out and identify and recruit the right teachers,” said Mackey. “Our attrition has dropped off greatly and I think we got great quality teaches and staff.”
Jacksonville Mayor Johnny Smith said that the city is losing a hard worker.
“He (Mackey) has always been very easy to work with and always very knowledgeable about everything considering education and the welfare of the kids,” said Smith. “I think he has done just a great job for our school system.
“He is going to be a big loss for us, but I certainly understand him taking advantage of the opportunity that is before him. I am sure he will do well, but he certainly will be missed here. So many young folks have been influenced by his hard work and his efforts for education.”
Tippets has been on the Jacksonville Board of Education since 2000 and has served as president of the board for the past six years. She was part of the group that hired Mackey eight years ago.
“Dr. Mackey leads not only by the things he says and does but by the way he acts,” said Tippets. “He is a very intelligent man, probably one of the most intelligent individuals I have ever been around. But, yet, he is very humble. He is very easy to work with and will go out of his way to make people feel good.”
Tippets said that Mackey has done so much for the school system.
“With the Alabama schools being in proration right now, Dr. Macky has kept us going,” said Tippets. “I think that without his leadership, the Jacksonville City Schools would be in deep trouble. I don’t think we would be still functioning without his leadership.”
Tippets believes that not only did Mackey keep the schools functioning, but also flourishing.
“Dr. Mackey has been one that has kept us on a course that has advanced the Jacksonville City School System,” said Tippets. “Despite the fact that we do not receive as much money locally as other schools do, he made sure that we have as much as we possibly can to enhance the students’ educations. He has really made advances with the Jacksonville High’s curriculum, especially with AP and dual enrollment classes. Everything has been a plus with him at the helm.”
Looking to the future, Hammett says he hopes to continue Mackey’s work while bringing in new ideas to help better the system.
“Most people are pretty satisfied with the way things are going,” said Hammett. “I am not somebody who is going to come in here and try to change the direction of what we are trying to do. There is always tweaking that needs to be going on and I think even Eric has done tweaking during his administration. But, the big concern is the budget. That is something for a year or so we are really going to have to monitor and just do the best we can. Eric has done a great job of being able to hold the line and of course the County Commission has been a life savor for us with the one-cent sales tax, if we didn’t have that we would be broke right now. The budget will determine a lot of things that we will be able to do.”
Hammett and Mackey will work together preparing for the transition.
“The good part about this is that part of Eric’s responsibility with the SSA is professional development for new superintendents so he is going to be working directly with me and he knows our situation better than anybody,” Hammett said. “He will be a consultant for me all the time. I feel very, very comfortable being able to get the advice I need from Eric at any time. That helps.”
I am sure both men are professionals but you will still probably be able to cut the tension with a knife.
Mackey and his wife Robyn are a class act. The success of Jacksonville school is a testament to what can be done in a public school with the right staff and leadership. Just think where they would be if Mackey would have had full reign to run things without meddling from the AEA, NEA and all the other special interest.
Eric, I don't know why you gave up preaching but we wish you the best.