The Tennessee Organization of School Superintendents (TOSS) met in Gatlinburg, TN on September 12th for their annual Awards Banquet. The 2022 Tennessee Superintendent of the Year was announced at the banquet on Sunday night. This year the honored award recipient was Dr. Ted Horrell of Lakeland School System, representing the Southwest region of Tennessee.
Dr. Horrell was selected for this honor from a distinguished group of eight Regional Superintendents of the Year, which included Dr. Jimmy Carter (Union County), East; Dr. Jeff Moorhouse (Kingsport City), First; Mr. Millard House (Clarksville-Montgomery County School System), Mid-Cumberland; Dr. Leah Watkins (Henry County), Northwest; Dr. Joey Vaughn (Manchester City), South Central; Dr. Linda Cash (Bradley County), Southeast; Dr. Ted Horrell (Lakeland), Southwest; and Mr. Corby King (Putnam County), Upper Cumberland Tennessee.
Prior to accepting his position at Lakeland Schools, Dr. Horrell served as principal of Germantown High School for two years and principal of Millington Central High School for three years. He is a 1992 graduate of Germantown High School and taught at the school for six years. Dr. Horrell received his undergraduate degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri. He went on to receive both his master’s degree in Leadership and Policy Studies, and his Doctor of Education degree from the University of Memphis. Dr. Horrell has served as the Founding Director of Schools in Lakeland School System since 2014. Under his leadership, Dr. Horrell has supervised the construction of a twelve classroom addition at Lakeland Elementary, and is currently supervising construction of a high school wing at Lakeland Preparatory to serve grades 9-12. Dr. Horrell enjoys spending time with his wife, Sarah, and sons Fletcher and Archer. He is an avid Memphis Grizzlies fan, and also enjoys playing music and writing songs.
TOSS Executive Director Dr. Dale Lynch stated, “First, I want to congratulate all of this year’s Regional Superintendents of the Year. These eight directors embody outstanding leadership in each of their districts and throughout our state. A special congratulations goes out to Dr. Ted Horrell for being chosen as the 2022 Tennessee Superintendent of the Year. His dedication to Tennessee’s students has continued to be exemplary, even in these challenging and difficult days. It is an honor to have Dr. Horrell representing Tennessee in the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year Program.”
Dr. Horrell will represent the state of Tennessee at the 2022 AASA National Conference on Education, which will be held in Nashville this February.
TOSS also presented the George "Kip" Reel Award for Leadership in Education to Dr. Phillip Wallace and the Friend of TOSS Award to Ms. Lillian Hartgrove, Chair of the Tennessee State Board of Education.
