Alumni Achievers-5639

Published March 28, 2014

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Joan Tidwell - Fairview High Class of 1970

Joan Tidwell is now serving her 11th year as principal at Fairview Elementary School. Tidwell was born and raised in the Fairview community, having attended Triangle School, Fairview Elementary and Fairview High.

How long have you worked in education? I began teaching in 1975. I took a five year break from public education to be a corporate trainer but had to return to my first love.

Where were you before you began working at Fairview Elementary? I taught in Dickson County for a total of three years; on the Crow Creek Sioux Reservation in South Dakota for two years; in a one room prairie school in South Dakota for a year; and Millard Public Schools in Omaha, Nebraska, for seven years. Then I moved back to Tennessee and went into corporate training. In 1991, I came back to Williamson County Schools. I taught two years at Bethesda and four years at Fairview Elementary before going to the Central Office as an education consultant. Then I decided to become an administrator and have served in that capacity as assistant principal at Hunters Bend and principal at Fairview Elementary.

What did you enjoy most about your high school experience? Our school was small enough that I knew everyone there. We had 67 in our graduating class, so I made lifetime friends that I still see at the grocery store and at church. I also enjoyed the opportunities for leadership that might not have been available to me in a larger school.

What WCS teacher made a difference in your life and how? That’s easy – Bettye Hyche. She was my biology teacher, and she pushed me to be the best I could be. She inspired me by the way she walked through a difficult time in her life. She modeled integrity, perseverance and grace, and that has served me well as I have walked through times when those qualities were critical. I would love to know that I have honored her by modeling what she taught me.

I am also fortunate to receive fresh inspiration every day from the WCS teachers at my school. They give their whole heart to our students, dreaming big and working hard to achieve the dreams. They give so much because they love so much, and they are my heroes.

Do you have any advice for current WCS students? Life is not about you; it’s about how you can make the world a better place. Look at everything you do through the lens of service to others, and you will do just fine.