Tara Burney is a product of the Baldwin School System, before leaving to attend Albany State College on a basketball, track, and cross-country scholarship, she was a Baldwin High School student and attended the original Midway Hills on Irvington Road. After getting her Masters and Specialist Degree in Educational Leadership and Administration at Georgia College, she was excited to return back to Baldwin County as the principal of Midway Hills Primary.
"I see each individual student as a player on the team," Burney said, "and I look at what our students need based on their data to devise a game plan to help them succeed, teaching kids what they need and giving them strategies to succeed."
Perhaps the reason that Burney is so adept at reframing education in this way is that she struggled in academics as a student herself. "I had to work hard to accomplish my goals because learning did not come easy for me," she said, "I see a lot of myself in my students, and that's what motivates me." The challenge of education means overcoming steep odds, and when children are able to overcome those odds they feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment. "I'm a role model for those students who struggle, and I want my students to know that just because you have a hard time does not mean you can't accomplish your goals or fulfill your dreams."
The greater the challenge, the greater the accomplishment, and recent years have made the challenge far greater than they ever were before. The NASSP's 2022 Survey of America's School Leaders recently released their annual survey in which, following the educational loss of the pandemic, half of all principals are considering either changing jobs or retiring altogether. But Burney says that doesn't concern her. "You have to understand your why," she said, "why am I here? I'm here because I love working with students. I'm here because I love teaching."
Burney is also the coach for the BHS Flag Football team, so she keeps her competitive edge. She enjoys going to the gym and spends a lot of time with her family, husband Pastor Hansel Burney Jr., and her five children (Jatarius, Alexis, Hansel III, Joshua, and Solomon and her granddaughter, Kaidyn Marie). "That helps with the stress," she said, "just having someone in your corner that's going to be there to support you through thick and thin." Burney is someone who knows that the most important key to winning any game is bringing out the best in the members of her team. Whether it's the members of her family, administration, or school, Principal Tara Burney knows how to bring out the best in them, and bring her team to victory.
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