Randy Tucker  (2014)

Stanley R. Tucker, Jr. had an extraordinary 45 year career in independent schools int he Southeast.  It began with 18 years spent at the Bolles School in Jacksonville, Florida, where he first served as a classroom teacher and coach, and later as Middle School Head and in a series of senior administrative positions.

In 1987 he was appointed Headmaster of Girls Preparatory School in Chattanooga, Tennessee, where he became an inspirational, transformational and beloved leader for the next 27 years.  Often referring to his time at GPS as "his life's work," Randy implemented many improvements to the school, and had a lasting impact on three dgenerations of studetns.  Perhaps the most important of these was his early reconition of the great potential educational technology had for improving teacher and learning, and for making the classroom more student-centered.  His vigorous and visionary efforts to integrate technology into the classroom in pursuit of educational excellence placed GPS squarely in the forefront of the revolution in classroom teacher that began in the mid-1990's, and the school remained a leader in this area throughout his tenure as Headmaster.

After retiring from GPS in 2013 he accepted a year-long position as Interim Headmaster of Battle Ground Academy in Franklin, Tennessee.  His dynamic leadership once again had a profound impact, and once again the cutting-edge deployment of technology in the classroom was one of his major goals.  By February of 2014 BGA had adopted both a new class schedule and new iPad program in grades 5-12 for the 2014-2015 school year.

Although a tragic accident prevented Randy from seeing his work at BGA come to fruition, his legacy of passionate, visionary and student-centered leadership not only lives on in the three schools he served so well, but it continues to play an important role in making independent school education better for all of us.