Durham named principal of Southern Oaks
Clay Durham was announced as the next principal of Southern Oaks Elementary School on Thursday afternoon, prior to a reception at the school.
Durham, who has held multiple positions at the school, will begin his new role July 1. He will replace Jennifer Humphrey, who is retiring at the end of the current school year.
'Being chosen to lead Southern Oaks Elementary School is truly a dream come true,' Durham said. 'I am honored and beyond excited to lead this incredible community. I look forward to working alongside our dedicated staff, supportive families and inspiring students as we continue the tradition of academic excellence and create new opportunities for growth and success.'
Durham said becoming an administrator wasn't always his goal.
'I think it's interesting that if you had asked me eight years ago, I would not have said I would be the principal at Southern Oaks,' he said. 'But I think God had a different plan for me.'
Durham began his educational career in 2009 in Ohio County Schools as a physical education teacher. Three years later, he became a physical education teacher at Southern Oaks Elementary, a role he held for 11 years. While in the classroom, he was responsible for his students' academic and social-emotional well-being and focusing on the foundations of movement, exercise and health and wellness.
In 2018 Durham was named the behavior interventionist, a role he held for five years. This role consisted of structuring and implementing Positive Behavior Intervention Systems school-wide to meet the social, emotional and behavioral needs of all students at Southern Oaks. Durham has worked collaboratively with his staff to build behavior management systems and supports to make Southern Oaks Elementary an environment where all students feel safe, valued and loved.
He said the move to being a behavior interventionist was a career changer.
'We had a behavior interventionist position posted and I couldn't stop thinking about it, and I applied for it; and Ms. Humphreys saw some leadership qualities in me, and I have slowly climbed that ladder,' said Durham, who said he wouldn't be where he is without the tutelage of Humphrey. 'She's incredible. I told her this when she told me she was going to retire, that outside of my family, there's not many more people that have had a greater influence on my life, especially professionally.
'She has helped prepare me for this position and has taught me so many invaluable leadership skills. I can't say enough about her, and if I can do anything close to what she has done around here, I would consider it a great success.'
Durham is currently serving as the assistant principal at Southern Oaks, a position he has held for the last three years. In this role, he has supervised the school's teaching and learning. He has worked to maintain an effective learning climate in the school, including evaluating and supervising the instructional processes, as well as overseeing the implementation of school-wide curriculums. Other responsibilities have included establishing guidelines for proper student conduct through the PBIS; planning, organizing, and implementing school activities; and implementing and supervising special education programs.
Durham holds two master's degrees from the University of the Cumberlands. He graduated in 2013 with his Master's in Educational Administration with his principal certification, and again in 2014 with his Master's in Health Education. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in physical education from Kentucky Wesleyan College in 2009.
Daviess County Public Schools Superintendent Charles Broughton said Durham is a perfect fit for the school.
'It starts with being a good person; you would find that with anyone that you ask about Clay Durham, he's a good person, and his love for this school,' Broughton said. 'He's been here for the last 14 years, assistant principal role for three, and so just the connections, what he's established as a professional here, certainly went a long way with the committee and went a long way with the stakeholders, based on the feedback.
'I won't say it was an easy easy decision, because we had some really good applicants, but in the end he emerged, and I think he is the best hire for this school.'
Broughton said maintaining the school's strong culture was also a consideration, and in that regard, Durham is well positioned to build on it.
'That came through a lot in the surveys and in the meetings with staff and with the council; there's no one that said anything to me, that said, 'I don't like how this is going,' ' Broughton said. 'Sometimes you want to go outside of whatever, a school or a district, if things aren't going so well. But in this circumstance, everybody is very pleased with what Southern Oaks is all about and they want to continue that and hopefully strengthen that.
'I hope and believe that Clay can take it to another level, if that's even possible.'
Durham said his goals are to foster a learning environment that emphasizes engaging and rigorous instruction to meet the needs of every student.
'I plan to work collaboratively with the staff at Southern Oaks,' Durham said. 'We will create a learning environment that helps every student reach their potential and meet their needs academically, socially and emotionally.'
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