By Malcolm Butler
Education runs through the blood for newly-named Choudrant High School principal Chris Jones.
Jones comes from an educational upbringing. He married into an education background. And he has traveled the education road throughout his professional career.
It’s a passion for him.
Jones was announced as the new principal at Choudrant High School on Tuesday, serving as the successor to recently-retired Tony Antley on Tuesday.
It’s a new title for Jones, but it’s at a school that he is all too familiar with.
“I am genuinely humbled for this opportunity,” said Jones. “I served as the assistant principal for eight years under Tony, and I worked hard to build relationships with the children and the families in Choudrant. I want to serve them, and I want to see our kids become successful adults. Watching kids grow up from junior high and become successful is the most rewarding part of any educator’s job.”
Growing up, both of Jones’ parents were educators. His mother was a teacher and drove a mobile classroom to different schools to tutor students. His father served as the principal at Wossman High School for 22 years as well as a stint as principal at St. Frederick High School.
“I grew up watching him build relationships with kids, parents, and the community,” said Jones of his father. “He always put the best interest of children first and never counted the hours he worked.”
Jones’ wife Mindy is a speech therapist for Lincoln Parish Schools. Both of his children — son Michael is a junior and daughter Sadie is a freshman — attend Choudrant. It’s truly a family affair.
Jones emphasized what a special place he believes Choudrant is, mainly because of its people.
“We have a wonderful staff of veteran teachers that genuinely love children,” said Jones. “Lisa Bastion and Tony Antley set the bar really high for Choudrant High School as leaders, but they will tell you our teachers, families, students, and community make Choudrant such a special place. I believe Choudrant High School is the best school in Louisiana. I moved my family from Ouachita Parish to downtown Choudrant so they could attend Choudrant High School.
“My son was a part of two state championships in baseball, he played in the quarterfinals in basketball twice, and my daughter is just getting to get started in her high school career. When they leave here they will have the foundation needed to be successful in college, but the best part of CHS is knowing that every day my own children come to school they are taught by teachers that love them – teachers loving kids is the rule here, not the exception.”
Jones graduated from St. Frederick and earned his bachelors degree in business administration from Louisiana Tech in 2001 before working in a corporate environment for five years. He then decided to follow his passion — teaching and coaching.
He started with a stop at Calhoun Middle School from 2006 through 2015 while working on his master’s degree in education leadership and supervision from Tech (2011). He served a dual role as the LEAP Remediation Coordinator for Ouachita Parish School Board (2011-2015).
He joined the Choudrant High School family in 2015 and has served as assistant principal for the past eight years.
In his new role as principal, Jones said his vision for the school is centered around the students.
“Keeping kids first in all decisions,” said Jones. “Our focus will be keeping children safe, making sure they get a high quality education, providing them with quality electives, and making sure they are ready for college or career when they walk across the stage at graduation.”
So what are some goals Jones wants to accomplish early in his tenure as principal at Choudrant?
