DeShaun McGee prides himself on knowing what’s going on in the Bradwell Institute lunchroom. As one of the assistant principals, the lunchroom and cafeteria are part of his responsibilities.
So when part of the marching band, followed by balloons and members of the school and school system administration came in, he didn’t expect it.
They brought with them his award for being named the Georgia Association of Secondary School Principals assistant principal of the year for the entire state.
“My first thought was, ‘how do I not know about what is going on in this building today?’” McGee said. “How do I not know what is going on? But it is a blessing in disguise.”
McGee has been with the Liberty County School System for four years, all of them at Bradwell. Mc-Gee beat out 144 other applicants and will compete next year for the national honor.
“In the past, I have had my leadership questioned,” he said. “I questioned myself, what kind of leader am I? Personally, this is a phenomenal thing for me. Professionally, I like to break barriers.”
Dr. Mary Ryan, the interim Bradwell principal, served alongside Dr. Mc-Gee as an assistant principal.
“He is a great assistant principal,” she said. “Anything I ask of him, he is a get-it-done guy.”
Along with the lunchroom and the school’s custodians and maintenance, he’s also in charge of the 11th grade cohort and oversees fine arts and social studies.
On top of that, he’s also interim band director, having been director of bands and fine arts coordinator in Wayne County.
“It’s quite a lot,” he said, “but it’s rewarding.”
Dr. McGee comes in early and stays late, Dr. Ryan said, and he also is quick to adapt to new technology when it’s brought into the school. But there is more that makes him a great assistant principal, she added.
“He is energetic and he is quick to go from one hallway to another,” she said. “He really has a great rapport with the students. The kids seek him out to talk to him, even the ones in trouble, He gives them good, honest advice. He is a great asset to our team and I’m sure one day he is going to be a great building leader of his own.”
Dr. McGee’s wife Monica is an academic specialist at Waldo Pafford Elementary, and the parade of well-wishers waited on her, and the couple’s baby, to arrive before surprising him.
“My wife and I are a team,” he said.
What set him apart from the other contestants, Dr. McGee said, was more than likely his personality.
“I am going to talk to a stranger,” he said.
“It’s that servant-leadership attitude. I love serving the students and helping the teachers and making sure they have everything they need.”
Keeping the big reveal quiet from the man who knows all the goings-on in the lunchroom wasn’t easy, Dr. Ryan admitted.
“It was very hard to keep it secret and a surprise,” she said, “because he is everywhere and involved in everything. It was hard to keep it a secret and arrange a big celebration we wanted to give him.”
