By Barry H. Hendrix
“My hope for you is that you all never underestimate the impact that you have on children. A kind word, an encouraging conversation, a lesson taught well, a student who feels valued and seen – these moments matter. In fact, they are the reason you are a public educator, and you remain one of the most powerful voices in our community.”
Vickie Morris, Thomasville City School Superintendent gave emotional closing remarks Aug. 3 at the annual Institute Day program for employees of the Thomasville City Schools District. She plans to retire as Thomasville superintendent at the end of the 2026-2027 school year.
“As we begin this new school year, I want to leave you with this thought: keep believing in the work that you do, keep believing in each other, and most importantly, keep believing in the incredible potential of every child that walks into your classroom.”
Morris was selected as superintendent by the Thomasville City Board of Education on April 19, 2022.
In reflecting over her tenure as superintendent, she told the gathered employees “there are some things I will never apologize for, and you shouldn’t either.
“…One of the first things I would say - I wouldn’t apologize for is putting kids first,” she said. “That is why we are educators.
“I will not apologize for being passionate – because we take a stand for what is right.
“I will not apologize for being a rule follower – even though it is hard to be around a person who is a rule follower,” Morris said. “Because to me, ethics and integrity are everything. If we all felt that way, we wouldn’t have to get 10 hours of ethics training. Evidently, there are a lot of people (where) that doesn’t matter to them.
“I’m never going to apologize for not being popular. I didn’t accept this job as superintendent to win friends and influence people – but to educate the children of Thomasville to the best of our ability. Honest conversations are hard, but they are necessary. Doing hard things is important. Popularity is not on my bucket list.
“…I want to win,” she said. “I did not sign up to lose. …I don’t care if I’m playing a five-year-old in checkers, I want to win. …I get that from my grandmother. She didn’t believe in letting you win. You had to earn it.
“…I will never apologize for demanding an ‘A.’ I demanded that we be an ‘A’ school district. The children of Thomasville deserve to attend an ‘A’ school just like the children of Vestavia Hills. You deserve to teach in an ‘A’ district.
“To all the coaches in the room, it is hard to climb that mountain and get that championship,” the superintendent said. “…It is hard to climb a mountain to get that “A.” Guess what is even harder? Staying there. …It’s harder to stay there than to get there.”