VIDEO: The First Day of School Has a Whole New Meaning Now For Some South Lamar School Employees

MILLPORT, AL. (WCBI) – Students across the area have kicked off a new year.

South Lamar School started earlier this week.

For some staff, the first day of school has a whole new meaning now.

The big difference is now, they’re not sitting in the desks, they’re standing at the front of the class.

Half of the South Lamar School employees graduated from the place where they now work.

Mary Kathryn Bozeman graduated from South Lamar High School in 1993.

Now, she sits behind the same desk that her high school counselor sat behind when she was a student.

“I think about the people that were here and the things that they did and hope that I can make a difference in the kids now, that those teachers made a difference in my life,” says Bozeman.

Bozeman is just one of four 1993 grads, who now works for their Alma Mater.

The last names, hallways, and desks have changed over the years, but the stories remain the same.

“Teachers can tell stories on me and I can tell stories on them because we know each other and we grew up with each other and so now, I know the parents of the kids, so that helps in some ways,” says Bozeman.

Those four graduates, plus twenty others, now walk the same halls they did when they were students.

“All over the state, teacher turnover is a major concern. We like to get teachers here who learn our process and learn our county’s process and so when they come here and stay, that just helps our children more and our facility come together,” says South Lamar School Assistant Principal Lisa Wright.

Wright is a former South Lamar High School homecoming queen, now she’s an assistant principal.

Looking back, she never thought she would go from sitting in these desks, to behind this one.

“I think we all have a vested interest in South Lamar School since we went here. It’s near and dear to our hearts and so we all choose to come back to this area because we have families here and we really want to see this school do well,” says Wright.

Principal Jason Williams not only started school at South Lamar, but also his two decade career.

His roles have changed throughout the years, but the memories haven’t.

“Some of the same stories about how everything got started, you know, games, you know, I played sports here myself. Our head coach, I coached him in high school.”