Cordell Schools announced that Mike Higgins has been chosen as the Elementary Principal for the 2021-22school year.
Higgins will replace Alan Hull, who will be retiring as the Elementary Principal after serving Cordell Schools for the past 20 years in that position.
Higgins has been a middle school science teacher and a baseball and basketball coach before moving into the administrative field. Higgins has served as an elementary principal for four years and a junior high and high school principal for the past 11 years.
Higgins and his wife Brooke have 3 children, son Tripp ,who is a 6th-grader, daughter Reece, a 3rd-grader, and son Kru, who is in pre-kindergarten.
"My family and I are excited about getting to Cordell and being a part of the Blue Devil family," Higgins said.
Higgins brings a wealth of experience and knowledge to Cordell Schools.
District ends mandatory masks in schools
Cordell Schools will no longer require masks for staff and students starting March
Masks will strongly be recommended but not required.
Washita County has had a dramatic decrease in the number of COVID-19 cases since the middle of February, said superintendent Brad Overton. The County is currently in the Yellow Category, according to the state health department alert system, he said.
According to the district's Return to Learn Plan, the
Yellow Category strongly recommends masks for students and faculty. We are moving from mandating masks to strongly recommending masks, Overton said
Individual students may require students to wear masks in their classrooms, and the district expects students to comply in such situations.
We will continue with the precautions that we have implemented this year," Overton said. "Teachers will continue to disinfect classrooms and visitors' access still will be restricted. Masks will still be reuired on buses."
The district will continue to encourage social distancing and hand washing, he said.
Overton said the district thanks the community.
"This has been a very challenging year for us all, and your support means the world to us. I am extremely proud of our staff, students and community for their continued efforts to keep our students in school and safe."
The district will continue to keep the safety and well-being of its students and staff as a top priority, he said, and will continue to monitor COVID-19 data and adjust accordingly.