of Coffee County Schools

By JAINE TREADWELL

Features Editor

Dr. Linda Ingram of Troy is the new superintendent of the Coffee County School System.

Five candidates were interviewed for the position which came open due to the retirement of Superintendent Rodger Bowden July 1.

The school board voted unanimously to recommend Ingram for the position at a special called meeting of school board members July 10 with the official announcement of the new voice of leadership coming July 12.

Ingram had served with the Coffee County School System as an administrative assistant for the past three years and worked in the county system for eight years.

"I am very excited about the opportunity," Ingram said. "I am so pleased that the board has confidence in me and my work for the system. Of course, my first love is being a high school principal, but I believe this is a good move for me and a wonderful opportunity."

Ingram joins a small group of women school superintendents in the state, but she said she has never let gender play a role in any position she has held.

She was one of the first female principals in Pike County in a long time when she was appointed principal of Goshen High School in 1982, a position she held until 1993.

"I never let the fact that I am a woman enter into my work," she said. "I don’t foresee gender playing a part in my role as superintendent of the Coffee County School System."

Ingram said she is already busy crunching numbers, but feels lucky that the Coffee County Schools are not struggling financially.

"In Pike County, we had to struggle, but the Coffee County School System is in good shape financially," she said. "I’m going to have to work hard to protect that financial soundness. As superintendent, I will be doing a lot of jobs because I’m not planning to replace myself as an administrative assistant. It just would not be a wise decision to have to hire and train someone at this time."

Ingram said she is looking forward to the challenges and opportunities of leading the Coffee County School System.

"Right now, we are getting ready for school to start in two weeks, so it’s a busy time," she said. "We are going to lose two teacher units and the most important thing right now is to be very careful in making this decision so that it is the least detrimental to our system. I’m sure we will face challenges in the state education budget cuts during proration over the next few years."

As an administrative assistant in the Coffee County School System, Ingram worked with the schools in system testing, special education, career technology fields and federal programs and state and federal grant programs.

She began her teaching career at Charles Henderson High School in 1971 after receiving a bachelor or arts degree from the University of Alabama.

In 1972, she received a master of arts degree from Troy State University and obtained AA certification from Auburn University at Montgomery in 1976. She received a doctorate of education from Auburn University in 1980.

Ingram taught at Goshen and Pike County high schools before taking over the helm at Goshen High School in 1982.

Prior to her appointment as administrative assistant of Coffee County Schools in 1998, she was director of Special Programs for Pike County Schools for a year and principal of Zion Chapel High School for four years. She was also an adjunct professor at Troy State from 1994-2000.

Ingram is married to David Ingram and they have a son and a daughter, Michael, 27, and Margaret, 24.