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‘Rehearsal for life’
Drama teacher to retire from Autrey Mill school
JOSHUA CURRAN
New members to assume posts on School Board By DELANEY TARR delaney@appenmedia.com
By AMBER PERRY amber@appenmedia.com JOHNS CREEK, Ga. — Across a conference table at Autrey Mill Middle School, it is clear that Shelly McCook is a thespian by the animated way she speaks. The energy and zest for life of the soon-to-retire drama teacher in Johns Creek could pull anyone in. Set to exit the school system in June, McCook has been in theater education for 25 years. She said teaching has allowed her to have a direct relationship to all of America. “I have taught at all kinds of different schools with different populations. I’m in a relationship with people that are very, very different from me,” McCook said. “I don’t think that everybody has that opportunity. I don’t think that they get to see America, who we are, for better, for worse.” McCook had 10 years of theater experience before entering education. An introvert growing up, she sought comfort in characters. She was initially scared to teach — she lost her first husband in 1999 and had a little boy to raise and needed to fashion a schedule that matched his. She already had a theater degree but obtained an emergency certificate and went back to school for a secondary English education degree. At the time, she worked, directed, went to school and performed at night, all while raising her son. “But it was great because I had some other actors move into my house with
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Shelly McCook is a drama teacher at Autrey Mill Middle School in Johns Creek, set to retire in June. McCook talked about her career and relationship to students Dec. 9. me and help me. It was like this village of people.” Getting comfortable McCook has been at Autrey Mill for five years and before that, Crabapple Middle School in Roswell. She also spent many years working at the high school level, where students choose to take drama, rather than being assigned. Teaching middle school is more of a balancing act, McCook said, where classes aren’t a homogenous group with the same levels of development or comfort. “[Middle school] is the age where [students] are most uncomfortable with themselves,” she said. “Some of them still
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have childlike imaginations. And some of them you would think are 30. And then some of them are in those teenage years where they hate everyone, including themselves.” Students must be comfortable with being silly, McCook said. In middle school, games are an important tool for classes. And McCook is not off to the side when students play them — she participates. “My favorite thing about my job is when I have kids that have major social anxiety, and when they get in my class or my rehearsals, they are set free,” McCook said.
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See McCOOK, Page 14
SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — The Fulton County School Board swore in three new members during a work session Dec. 6. The newcomers will take office in January 2023. Michelle Morancie, Kristin McCabe and Lillie Pozatek won their district seats in May 2022, after the current board members decided to retire. The seats are non-partisan. The Fulton County School Board also appointed Katie Gregory to fill the District 3 seat, covering parts of Sandy Springs, College Park, East Point and Hapeville. She was appointed to fill the term of Gail Dean. Gregory will be sworn in at the Dec. 14 School Board meeting at the South Learning Center in Union City.
See SCHOOLS, Page 4
DELANEY TARR/APPEN MEDIA
Michelle Morancie is sworn in as District 7 Fulton County School Board member at a work session Dec. 6. She’ll begin her term in January.
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