Coan new Phillips High School principal

BEAR CREEK - Tina Coan, a native of the Bear Creek community and a long-time teacher at Phillips Schools, has now returned to Phillips as the new high school principal, effective July 1.
A 1992 graduate of PHS, Coan earned an associate’s degree from Northwest-Shoals Community college, where she played volleyball, and then a B.S. in early childhood and elementary education from Athens State University.
She began her teaching career at Phillips Elementary School, where she taught kindergarten, second, third and fourth grades at various times before becoming a reading/instructional coach.
While teaching at PES, she worked on her master’s degree in instructional leadership at the University of West Alabama, completing the degree in 2021.
In July, 2021, after 23 years at PES, Coan accepted a position as assistant principal at Moulton Middle School, which has a student body of around 500 fifth through eighth graders.
"I'm happy to be home. I'm glad to get back to the school where I came from," Coan said, adding that she would not have expected she would one day return to PHS as its principal.
"I've come full circle,”  Coan said.
It's been a while since we've had (a principal) who is from here, that knows the traditions from years ago.  I want to continue those traditions. I want to begin a new tradition for Phillips High School," Coan said.
She also said it's very nice to now be working only a 12-minute drive from her home.
The three years she spent at MMS gave her the chance to gain experience in another school system, Coan said.
"I think it's good to have change a little bit, (to) see how other places do things and run things. It was very good experience for me and they were very good to me,”  Coan said.
Asked about this being her first high school position, Coan said, "It's going to be challenging, just (because) I (have an) elementary background, but having the middle school experience, I think it's going to help prepare me for being here at the high school.
"I just have to take it day by day in baby steps. I've got to prioritize what needs to be addressed first and then go from there," she continued.
"I want to take other people's input, people in the community, students here at the school, teachers, alumni," she noted. "I want to involve as many people and be transparent when prioritizing some of these projects that we're going to have to do."