Note: This is the final installment in a series by Athens ISD profiling the seven members of the Board of Trustees.
By Toni Garrard Clay/AISD Communications Specialist
Athens ISD School Board member Ginger Kirk has a heart for people in need, which is evident in the choices she has made.
Kirk grew up in Athens and graduated from Athens High School on a Friday night in 1972. By Sunday afternoon, she was at Texas Women’s University ready to go to work toward earning a degree in nursing.
“My friends made fun of me for choosing to go to an all-girl school. So I thought I’d go to TWU in the summer just to see if I liked it,” said Kirk. “I absolutely fell in love with it.”
While attending TWU, Kirk met and married her husband of 41 years, Steve. They have two boys, Barrett and John, both of whom graduated from AHS and have master’s degrees from Texas A&M University.
“The Athens school system prepared them very well,” said Kirk. “But the key to success is parental involvement. You even need to guide your child in the electives they take. Have a goal, and help them try to reach that goal.”
After Kirk became a registered nurse, she worked at St. Paul’s Hospital in Dallas in the psychiatric unit for about four years and loved it. Later, after she and her husband moved to Athens and built a home on family land, she worked for 16 years at East Texas Medical Center Athens as the director of social services. Kirk recently retired after serving as a social worker at a local nursing home. The focus in her career has been to help those in need.
“Some people can rise above adversity and difficulties, and some people it knocks their legs out from under them,” she said.
During her nine years of service as a Place 4 Athens ISD trustee, Kirk has focused intently on serving those she feels most need a voice on the board. “Being from Athens, I care deeply about the school system,” she said. “Even though my kids are gone, that doesn’t negate my interest in all the other kids. There will always be kids who grow up here, go to college and never come back. For those who are left, we have to make sure they get a good education so they can provide a decent income for their family. That makes the whole community stronger. Being a social worker, I tend to look out for the underdog.”
In the years she has served, Kirk said she has definitely seen campuses improve, becoming more attractive, more secure and “user friendly.”
The role of this and any school board, she said, is oversight and budget. “People don’t realize that the superintendent is the only employee we oversee,” she said. “All other employees are under the superintendent. It’s our job to make sure the budget reflects the needs of the district and our policies and procedures are being followed.