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Beard prepares for LMS takeover
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| By: Ettie Newlands |
May 27, 2005 |
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Beard keeps a pair of baby shoes in her office to remind her what the focus of her job should be..
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The little ceramic pair of baby shoes in Judy Beard's office reminds her what her job is all about.
No stranger to the field of education, she's just accepted the position of principal at Loris Middle School. Left vacant by Scott Mercer, who's accepted a superintendent's position in Spartanburg County, Beard's official "first day of school" was Monday.
That's not to say Beard wasn't a visible presence before then.
She's worked with Mercer, teachers, staff and students to insure a smooth transition in personnel at the middle school.
At the same time, she's continued working at the district level where she's been a principal specialist for Horry County schools for the last year.
In that role, she's been responsible for the supervision of English language arts and math programs in K-8 primary, elementary and middle schools.
Her new position brings the educator full circle because her first local teaching assignment was teaching fifth grade at Loris Middle in 1988.
Beard came to Loris from Austinville Elementary School in Decatur, Ala., where she also taught fifth grade and was a grade level chairperson.
When she left LMS in 1989, Beard was a teacher in the Gifted and talented Program in Myrtle Beach, Lakewood and Forestbrook elementary schools. She provided the gifted curriculum to 80 students in grades third through fifth who participated in the PELICAN Program.
In 1996, beard began teaching fifth grade at Carolina Forest Elementary, where she was also grade level chairperson.
She was assistant principal at Carolina Forest Elementary from 1999-2001, when she became principal there.
Before going into the field of education, she was both a secretary and a paralegal, but neither of those jobs was as rewarding for Beard, who has a bachelor of science degree in elementary education from Athens State College and a master of education degree from USC.
She's affiliated with the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development, the S.C. Association of School Administrators, the National Associatio. of Gifted Children, the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the National Science Teachers Association and the International Reading Association.
A native of Lewisburg, Tenn., a community she said is not unlike Loris, Beard and her family moved here in 1988 from Alabama.
John, Beard's high school sweetheart and husband of 32 years, is the current interim dean for the College of Humanities at Coastal University. After a year, he'll resume his position as an American Literature professor.
The couple, who lives in Conway, has two grown children, a daughter Kelly and a son, James.
"I'm a country girl," Beard said. "I grew up about 14 miles outside the city and rode the bus everyday. One thing I miss about not being in Tennessee is seeing farm lands and bales of hay flocks of turkeys."
Being in Loris is a lot like home, she said, and has a lot to do with why she's so comfortable in her new role.
The oldest of four children, Beard was the daughter of Frances, a homemaker, and Willie Osteen, a catcher for the St. Louis Cardinals in the late 1940s, who also worked in manufacturing as a supervisor. From them, Beard learned the secret of dealing successfully with people.
A self-described "people person," Beard said she thinks of her job as being a cheerleader. "That's the principal's moral obligation, keeping people's spirits high so they can do the best thing for the kids."
Beard's father taught her that if people aren't happy, they won't do their best, and everything she brings to her job has to do with "what's best for kids. No matter what capacity we are in in a school, that should be our focus," she said.
That focus is why she keeps a pair of baby shoes in her office. "They remind me that when parents are upset, they're upset on behalf of their baby," she said. "When they bring that baby home from the hospital, they have all their hopes and dreams for that baby and it's that point of view they're coming from."
Her empathy doesn't stop with the students or the parents, however. She also considers the staff when the thinks about her responsibilities.
"Change is how we grow," she said. "Schools today can't be like they were 20 years ago because the world is changing so rapidly. I have to lead the staff through those changes."
Coming from Carolina Forest Elementary where there were more than 1,000 students, Beard is confident she can deal with whatever changes are ahead.
"I am out to have this school have a stellar reputation in the community and county," Beard said about Loris Middle. "I want this school to be the exemplary middle school in Horry County."
Planning to work closely with both the elementary schools and the high school, Beard wants Loris Middle to pick up where the elementary schools stop, and to prepare students to excel at the high school level.
Beard's professional honors include being a 1991 recipient of a U.S. Air Force Scholarship sponsored by the U.S. Space Foundation and Horry County Schools; a 1993 recipient of the Audubon Scholarship; a 1994 co-writer and teacher of the pilot project of the science-based PELICAN curriculum for grades three, four and five; a 1996 recipient of the Teacher of the Year Award at Myrtle Beach Elementary School; a 2001 finalist in palmetto's Finest Award; a 2002 recipient of the Horry county Schools Pacesetter Award and the palmetto Gold Award; a 2003 recipient of the Closing the Gap Award and the Red Carpet School Award; and a 2004 recipient of the Closing the Gap Award, the Palmetto Gold Award, and a graduate of the Progress Energy Executive School Leadership Award,
When she isn't working, Beard loves to enjoy the outdoors. Describing the area as "rich with flora and fauna," walks in Huntington Beach State Park is a favorite pastime.
Down time, however, is admittedly scarce. "My husband and I are so passionate about what we do, that it consumes our time," she said, "especially since right now we're both transitioning in our jobs."
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©Loris Scene 2010
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