Wednesday, April 30, 2008
John Hall: Interacting with students
He challenges his staff to have interesting programs outside the classroom.
Miranda Adkins | So Salem
John Hall enjoys his "twentieth or so year" at Salem, complete with another forensics team championship. —
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Learn about the principal
C. John Hall Jr., Salem High School principal
- Education and experience: Virginia Military Institute graduate, biology; Virginia Tech, master’s in microbiology; Army.
- Wife: Linda Johnston Hall, a fifth-grade teacher at South Salem Elementary.
- Children: Two daughters. Betsy, 28, teacher at G.W. Carver Elementary; Anne, 24, graduate of James Madison University.
- Favorite color: Probably khaki, real favorite color is probably some kind of green.
- Favorite food: “Always I think you could come back to pizza, but I really like Thai food.”
- Hobbies: “The Y[MCA] satisfies a lot of things; I can go up and do a yoga class, work out on the equipment. … In my down time, I hike with my chocolate Lab, Madison.”
"This is my club," John Hall said, beaming from ear to ear. "I remember when one of my predecessors, Bob Lipscomb, said we needed to be an interface in the community," Hall said.
"We have a great relationship with clubs like the Kiwanis, the Rotary," and many others in the community. Hall explained that Lipscomb joined the Rotary early in the '80s, but he had burnout trying to get to games, ceremonies and weekly meetings. Still, the relationships built then help even today. Hall said he has learned that interfacing with students and parents at after-school functions serves the school best.
Along with making it to as many events as possible, Hall challenges each of the employees at Salem High School to develop a program outside the classroom to interact with students on a more personal and creative level. Some take a more traditional route as coaches of athletic and intellectual clubs, but more innovative groups are beginning to take shape. Library aide Theresa Grey gets a group of high school students together pretty regularly for a podcast from the SHS Web site.
Salem High School, as well as having consistently strong sports teams, also boasts a forensics team that has taken the state title for three years in a row -- something formerly relegated to the band and athletic teams. They'll soon add a state title sign to Salem's city limits. Their victory this past month falls in line with the advice he might have given to his high school self: "I would have told myself to work hard and stand in the light."
"Very fundamentally, kids represent a huge reservoir of talent, and I believe that teachers are the magic that bring that talent out," Hall said.
In his twentieth year as Salem High School's principal, he has the honor of overseeing a graduating class that has a guaranteed "free ride" to Virginia Western Community College. With a large number of students already taking advantage of dual enrollment with the community college, Hall is confident that the program will help native college graduates stay in or return to the area.
