The Staff of WGHS

Staff at WGHS go above and beyond for the students here by giving them countless opportunities and by making sure they are set up for success in the future!
by Makenzie Bass

What’s your favorite part about your change?

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor (Front Office): “Being able to interact with the students. They are all different in their own ways which is a great thing.”
• Officer Baldwin (Deputy of Sherriff's Dept): “Interacting with the students.”
• Mrs. McCollum (Counselor): “Talking with the kids.”
• Mr. Maddox (Floor Technician): “Keeping the school clean.”
• Mrs. Smith (Cafeteria Manager): “Getting to talk to the kids.”
• Mrs. Head (WBL coordinator): “Getting to know kids and helping them figure out what the want to do with their life.”
• Coach Fiddler (Special Education teacher): “Every day is different. You never know what you’ll get out of students. It’s also cool building relationships with the students and seeing them grow throughout the year.”
• Nurse Bingham: “Seeing my students every day.”

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How do you maintain a good work/ home balance?

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor: “By being consistent and intentional with tasks at home and at work. And also by being realistic with what I can and can’t accomplish.”
• Officer Baldwin: “I don’t mingle the two, and I keep them separate.”
• Mrs. McCollum: “I would love to say that I do, but that’s a work in progress. But probably just trying to shut it down on breaks and things like that and not checking my email.”
• Mrs. Smith: “I leave work at work and home at home.”
• Mrs. Head: “It’s hard sometimes because there’s always something to do, but I try really hard to not work at home after six o’clock.”
• Coach Fiddler: “Well I’m definitely here more than I’m home. I leave here and go to the field and coach baseball. But both of my kids and my wife love being up here. When we’re at home, we chill and have a good time.”
• Nurse Lauren: “I have the same schedule as both my daughters in the Walton county school district, so I get the summers off and get to spend time with them and that’s nice. I leave at 3:15 so I still have the afternoon and evening time to spend with my kids.”

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Did you always want to do your profession? 

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor: “I wouldn’t say I always wanted to do this profession, but I do enjoy this profession. I wanted to be a doctor, which I still could do, but in the meantime. I am enjoying what I do.”
• Officer Baldwin: “I did not decide to be a police officer until after I got out of the Marine Corps.”
• Mrs. McCollum: “I actually started out as a teacher, but then I realized that I liked talking with the kids about life things more than I liked the actual teaching part.”
• Mr. Maddox: “Yes, I always wanted to do this profession.”
• Mrs. Smith: “I always wanted to be a chef.”
• Mrs. Head: “I would say I always wanted to be a teacher. I briefly thought about being an accountant, but I didn’t like the tax laws, so that got really boring to me. Then someone said ‘Why don’t you just teach business?’ and that’s how I started being a business teacher.”
• Coach Fiddler: “I think I figured out I wanted to be a teacher when I was in eleventh grade.”
• Nurse Lauren: “I did not always want to be a nurse. I wanted to be a radiology technician, and then halfway through the program, I realized I wanted something more diverse.”

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What’s your favorite hobby outside of work?

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor: “My favorite hobby is running races. I like to run half marathons, 10ks. I think it’s a great time for myself and being alone and just thinking about everything. And I also get to stay fit.”
• Officer Baldwin: “Coaching Football.”
• Mrs. McCollum: “Exercising and hanging out with my family.”
• Mr. Maddox: “Riding horses”
• Mrs. Smith: “I like to color a lot.”
• Mrs. Head: “Spending time with my family.”
• Coach Fiddler: “Coaching my kids and playing golf.”
• Nurse Lauren: “I like hunting, crafting, and spending time at the beach. I like warm weather, so anything outside related.”

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What’s your favorite part about the environment here at WG?

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor: “I love the environment here. I love the culture, everyone is very professional and treats the students and young adults with respect, and they prepare them for real life.”
• Officer Baldwin: “Just the everyday, new experiences that I have in dealing with the students and the staff.”
• Mrs. McCollum: “Probably the family- my coworkers are kind of like my family and just having fun while doing our job.”
• Mr. Maddox: “The kids and the staff.”
• Mrs. Smith: “Probably the kids and my coworkers. We have a great staff back here.”
• Mrs. Head: “It's like a family. Everyone is welcoming and tries to help each other.”
• Coach Fiddler: “I think it’s a really relaxed place to work. I like the fact that our leaders in the building allow us to have freedom and trust us to do our jobs.”
• Nurse Lauren: “I enjoy seeing my students everyday. I like coming to the after-school activities, supporting our students and recognizing them for academic excellence and athletic achievements, so all of the students here are some part of my kids.”

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What’s your favorite activity here? 

• Mrs. Griffin-Taylor: “My favorite activity is selling Chick Fil A biscuits. I get to interact with a lot of different students. You have students that come in the front office, but you also have students that don’t, so that way I can learn their names and it allows me to get to know [the students] a little better.”
• Officer Baldwin: “Coaching Football.”
• Mrs. McCollum: “Walking around in the mornings. Talking with kids and all the staff.”
• Mr. Maddox: “Basketball.”
• Mrs. Smith: “I love to come to the Basketball games.”
• Mrs. Head: “I enjoy watching all the sports.”
• Coach Fiddler: “Coaching Baseball.”
• Nurse Lauren: “I am a big supporter of volleyball because both my girls play volleyball.”

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