Cody Weatherly day is always changing. It started with a blossoming opportunity. There was an open Assistant Principal position at the end of last year. Coach Weatherly saw an opportunity for a new perspective; from being a baseball coach and teacher these past couple of years, to even winning Teacher of the Year in 2019-2020; there is more to our new AP than meets the eye.

“That’s what I’ve enjoyed so far [about being an AP]: is that no day has been even close [to being the same],” said Mr. Weatherly. “I may come to school expecting my day to go one way, and by second period, it’s totally different.”

His day-to-day has been radically different from last year. With a lot of stuff to get done in a day, it is a bit chaotic. Yet the charm to that is that every day is fresh. Especially compared to the day-to-day of a teacher.

”As far as coaching goes: I haven’t been far away from the games and the competition for that long, but I’ll miss that a lot. I’ll also miss the camaraderie of the team, you know, when you have your players on your team, and you have all that together, that’s a unique, special bond that you don’t get if you’re not there,” said Mr. Weatherly.

According to Mr. Weatherly, coaching focuses on improving the team. However as an AP, Weatherly focuses on the whole school, not just a team. Even as a teacher, his classroom responsibilities were nothing compared to an AP’s.

“As a teacher, I had my classroom with my students. And as a coach, I had my team with my players. And I focus on those guys… Now as [an assistant] principal, it’s a totally different lens of seeing the school,” said Mr.Weatherly, “Now, instead of focusing on my small group, I have to focus on 3,500 students.”

There are so many different kinds of students as well. As an AP in a diverse school, it is challenging to connect with so many students.a stark contrast from teaching and coaching.

“Now I see kids that are in band, and in choir, and theater arts, and football, and basketball, and, you know, every single individual kid – seeing the school from a different perspective, which is fun, because now we have a different goal for everybody,” said Mr.Weatherly. “I don’t have the same connection with the team. But now, I’m getting to make connections with different kids that I wouldn’t normally get to know. It’s fun to make those relationships that are different from what I’ve been making.”

Forming connections is a very different process for Mr.Weatherly as an AP. When he was a teacher and coach, getting to know students was inevitable. That doesn’t mean that Mr.Weatherly isn’t forming any relationships, though.

“One of the things that have made this the best transition is just how great the people that work here are. I know y’all may not see it, but you know, the assistant principals… If it wasn’t for them, [being an AP] would be much, much more difficult than it has been,” said Mr.Weatherly, “So I owe them a lot. They help out a whole lot… I couldn’t ask for more than what they’ve offered. “