He taught science

for only a year before accepting an assistant principal position at Eastside,

which then served as an elementary school and junior high school for East

Coweta High. East Coweta housed two schools, serving grades 1 through

4 and 9 through 12.

He served later

as a principal of East Newnan School, and then as an assistant principal

of East Coweta High School. In 1983, Wood's old alma mater needed a top

administrator, and Superintendent Robert E. Lee called on him.

"I've

enjoyed it. I've been very lucky because I love it, to this day,"

said Wood, who hasn't missed a full day of work in 32 years. "I fell

off a roof one day, but I was back by 1 p.m."

His reasoning

is simple. "It's because I love what I do. As principal of Newnan

High, I've been to the White House (on more than one occasion), met Deng

Xiao Ping."

He has also

been interviewed on CNN and CBS, and participated in several national-scope

projects. "But nothing enthuses me as much as looking into the eyes

of kids. I'm a lucky one."

Wood remembers

seeing students wave flags at National Guard troops departing from the

Newnan Armory, next door to the school, as they went on their way to fight

in the Gulf War. He was at the school when the Newnan Cougars were led

"We were

the first to play in the Georgia Dome, before the Falcons had a chance

to play there," he said.

The nature

and challenges of education have changed in Wood's 30-plus years of teaching.

"The school

system and county have matured and changed and grown," he said. "It's

difficult - and more essential than ever - to keep up communication between

families and schools - hard, because we're no longer the gatekeepers of

all the knowledge or the main focus of student's attention. We have to

compete with the media culture."

Wood has seen

other challenges as well, such as an increased emphasis on school safety

following Columbine. But for all the challenges, "we've still managed

to make some dramatic progress in terms of student achievement. We don't

realize, sometimes, that the kids today are better educated. The standards

are higher for graduation, and we're offering AP courses that are the

equivalent of what we took in college. We forget that."

Why? Wood attributes

two reasons in particular.

"We meet

each challenge because as educators, we know what we're doing, and for

me it has been a pleasure to serve my career with well-educated, moral

professionals, who have been as inspiring to me as they are to their students."

The other reasons:

"The public - our community - has always supported the schools. That

makes a huge difference in our ability as schools to instruct, inspire

and instill high expectations in young people. And when we do that, students

will meet their expectations."