By Shannon McFarlin News Director
Paris, Tenn.–There is a changing of the guard at Lakewood School in Paris, with a long-time educator retiring as principal and another educator with deep Henry County roots named as the new principal.
Lakewood Elementary Principal Amy Veazey will be retiring effective July 1 and Assistant Harrelson Principal Amber Ryan has been named as Lakewood Elementary Principal.
Ryan is no stranger to Lakewood, since she started her teaching career there. And, Ryan and Veazey have a shared history in that both their families have roots in the Puryear area.
Veazey said, “I knew from the time that Amber was little that she would be a leader. Nothing could please me more than Amber being appointed Principal. What I wanted for the school is the very best and I know with that great school and the great staff, she can take it to the next level.”
Ryan has been Assistant Principal at Harrelson in Puryear for the past four years, before which she taught at Harrelson and taught at Lakewood Middle School. She is a 1999 Henry County High School graduate. She and her husband, Will, have three children: Liam, Lillian and Anne Elizabeth.
Director of Schools Dr. Leah Watkins said, “We’re sad to see Amy retire, but very excited to have Amber step into that position.”
Veazey has been in education for some 39 years and said she knew from early on that was the career path she wanted to take. “I always knew I wanted to be a teacher. And I always knew I wanted to be a principal.”
She came by it naturally, with both her father and mother being educators. Her father, John Underwood was the last principal of the former Grove High School and first principal of the new Henry County High School and he taught at several west Tennessee districts; her mother Grace Nelle Underwood taught in the Henry Co. and Tipton Co. school districts.
Amy also taught in west Tennessee school districts, including Covington and Humboldt, after she was graduated from the University of Tennessee at Martin. She returned to Henry County, where she served as Assistant High School Principal and then Lakewood Principal.
She currently is an adjunct teacher at UT Martin and said she plans to continue with that. “I’m really enjoying that and I’d like to continue in education in some way. It’s in my blood.”