Kelby Daniel takes lead at TES
With the departure of Ann Scott for Belgreen, Tharptown Elementary School was left with an empty chair in the principal’s office right up until the day before the first day of school for students. But with a last-minute hire by the Franklin County Board of Education, TES started back to school with, Superintendent Greg Hamilton said, the right man for the job.
Kelby Daniel is the new principal at Tharptown Elementary, and he said he was excited for the opportunity.
“It was something I just prayed about,” Daniel said. “I wanted to be willing to do what God wanted me to do as far as new tasks, challenges and things that would grow and change me.”
Daniel comes to TES from an administrative role at RCS’ West Elementary.
“He spent the last 12 years in the Russellville City Schools system and comes to us from being assistant principal at West Elementary. We feel like he’s a perfect fit for our school,” Hamilton said. “He’s excited to be the school leader.”
His student body is different at TES, Daniel said, with about 540 students spread among Pre-K through sixth grade as compared to more than 700 in Pre-K through second grade, at West. In the first few days of school, Daniel said, his focus was to quickly get to know everyone within the first few days.
Of course, since he spent the summer preparing for a new year at West, to then come on at TES at the proverbial 11th hour, his new environment and new routine have required some adjustment.
“The biggest change is when I come out of my driveway, instead of turning right, turning left,” Daniel joked. Daniel said the top-notch Scott did as principal at TES paved the way for a smooth transition for him to step into the role.
Daniel said his leadership style is “servant leadership” with a two-fold focus: maximize the strengths and improve the weaknesses.
Daniel said continued growth is the challenge looming largest on the horizon at TES, and he aims to continue to put a priority focus on efforts including safety and communication.
Daniel expressed thankfulness for the opportunities he had at Russellville, where he was a coach and PE teacher prior to the last five years serving as the assistant principal, and the great relationships he formed with people there, but he is eager to becoming established in the Tharptown community.
“I’m looking forward to it,” Daniel said. Of course, “I’ve got to change my wardrobe. I’ve got a lot of black that’s coming out of my closet. I’ve got to work on the blue.
“I like blue though. It’s one of my favorite colors.”
Daniel earned his bachelor’s degree at the University of North Alabama and his education specialist degree at Delta State. He and wife Terri have three children: son Jacob, a firefighter, and wife Chase with their son Xander Stone; son Kaleb, who is in the Navy, stationed in San Antonio, Texas; and daughter Kalli Beth, a student-athlete playing softball at Delta State.
