By By Adam Prestridge
Atmore businessman and Escambia Academy graduate Chris Kirk has taken over the role of chairman of the board of his alma mater.
Kirk, 38, said he is excited about the opportunity to help lead the board at EA and to be a part of the school’s rebuilding process.
Kirk said the EA Board met once a week during the summer and also held focus groups with parents who addressed their concerns and gave suggestions.
The two main concerns of the parents were communication and discipline, Kirk said.
Kirk believes improving communication is important to the board in order to get the school “back on track” and to “keep it healthy.”
As for discipline, Kirk said the board had to devise policies that were common throughout the entire school.
The board, with recommendations from school’s faculty, developed more structured disciplinary procedures in hopes of eliminating confusion for both faculty and students.
Some of those problems last year resulted in a decrease in enrollment this school year and had board members questioning the Academy’s future. Kirk said with a lot of hard work from the school’s board members, employees and parents, things are beginning to smooth out.
Without the board in place, Kirk said the turn around may not have occurred.
As for Kirk’s plans while leading the board, he simply wants to continue recruiting students and keep the curriculum up to date.