Crockett ISD Names New Athletic Director
By Greg Ritchie
Messenger Reporter
CROCKETT – The Crockett Independent School District (CISD) held a board meeting Monday, June 26 to decide on the final candidates for the Ring of Honor nominees and make several hiring decisions, including a new district athletic director.
After approving previous minutes and regular budget matters, the district tallied up the votes for the next round of honorees for the CISD Ring of Honor. The winners will be celebrated Bulldog homecoming game with a special ceremony before unveiling their names on the wall at the Monte Jack Driskell Stadium.
There were 12 total nominees this year and the board commented on how well the applications were presented, with a lot of additional information to help the board make their final decisions. Of the 12, only five will be honored this year. CISD Superintendent John Emerich told attendees it sometimes takes more than one try to get a nominee through, so even if someone’s preferred candidate did not win, they should reapply next year.
No names were released, only letters, each letter representing a different candidate. The district will send out letters to the winners before releasing the names sometime in July.
Emerich requested the board approve a slight change to school policy which will allow certain designated people at the schools to administer Narcan, a medicine used to treat those suspected to be suffering from an opioid overdose.
Previously, medications could only be given with a doctor’s prescription and only by an administrator designated to give the medication. With a change this year in state law, virtually anyone could administer the medication if there is someone suspected of suffering from an overdose.
Emerich told the board the medication is almost fail-proof, comprised of a pen which is held agains the victim’s skin and with the push of a button the medication is delivered. Emerich said he would like to get the medication to nurses, central offices and the school’s police department and educators will receive training on how to apply the drug.
Although the new law does not come into effect until October, Emerich said certain districts are receiving special permission to start the program early and purchase the medication now to be ready for the start of classes set for August.
Emerich noted the pens cost $120 each, but can be life-saving for someone suffering and overdose. Emerich also said Narcan will not harm someone who has passed out for reasons other than opioids, having no ill effect when given to someone suffering from other causes. The board approved this unanimously.
The board then went into a long executive session, without the public or the media to hammer out personnel issues and fill vacant positions before the start of the school year. The district voted to hire several teachers, an assistant principal, a baseball coach and a girls’ basketball coach.
The biggest news and most anticipated was the naming of a new athletic director for the district. Information was not immediately available for how many candidates were considered, but CISD decided to give the position to existing CISD Coach Jody Jordan. Coach Jordan has been busy this summer keeping the kids in shape since the abrupt departure of Alton Dixon.
The Messenger has an appointment with Jordan before the district closes next week for the holiday and will bring our readers more information about the coach and his plans for the coming school year.
Emerich said he was pleased with the decision.
“Jordan has been with us for a year already in an assistant role, with previous head coaching experience,” Emerich said. “He knows the kids and we got good feedback from kids, parents, community members and other staff members which made it an easy decision. That is who I recommended to the board and they approved him unanimously.”
Although promoting from within was certainly an added plus to naming Jordan to the role, Emerich said it wasn’t the most important factor.
“It wasn’t the main criteria. I think in this case, it helped because of the time of the year and his familiarity with the kids in the program. That was certainly something that played into the decision but wasn’t the primary criteria that I was looking at. He just happened to be the best candidate that had applied,” Emerich concluded.
Greg Ritchie can be reached at [email protected]
