At Thursday’s Vicksburg-Warren School Board meeting, Eric Green was named principal of Warren Central High School and Buddy Wooten was named principal of Redwood Elementary School.

These appointments come after former Warren Central principal Jamie Creel made the decision to leave the field of education and Redwood principal Leandrew Drake, Jr. was named principal of Vicksburg Junior High School.

Green, a former youth minister with nine years in the field of education, said he’s excited to get started at Warren Central.

Green spent time coaching and teaching in Waynesboro and McComb.

“Once I got into the school I really realized that’s what I needed to be doing,” Green said.

Green, originally from Flora, and his wife, originally from Crystal Springs, decided they wanted to be closer to home, and he next accepted a position at Carver Middle School in Terry.

“I was there for a year and got the opportunity to come over to Raymond High School as an assistant principal and building-level athletic director,” he said. “I was there for three years.”

Green said he was excited when he learned the job at Warren Central came open.

“In my role that I served at Raymond High School I had my hands in a lot,” he said. “I consider myself a blue collar guy.”

Growing up, Green said his father owned a machine shop.

“I grew up from the time I could walk in my dad’s shop doing anything he needed me to,” he said. “I see Vicksburg as kind of that same blue collar place.”

For that reason, Green said he thinks he’ll be a good fit with the school and in the community.

“I’m tremendously excited to get started,” he said. “There’s work to be done at the school. I plan on taking a team approach to that. Many hands make light work. From the administration down to the teachers we’re going to rally together and get done what we need to.”

Superintendent Chad Shealy said Green has incredible communication skills and a sharp, innovative mind.

“To describe Eric Green as inspiring would be an understatement,” he said. “Not only did Mr. Green play college sports, but he also graduated first in his class at William Carey with a background in English.”

Shealy said as a scholar athlete, Green will be a seamless fit for Warren Central.

“Data and research driven decisions highlighted his vision for the quality educational program he plans to establish at Warren Central High School,” he said. “He brings with him the experience of instructional improvement resulting in raising the graduation rate of Raymond High School from 50 percent to 79 percent in just two years, which resulted in Raymond High School seeing a rise in two levels of the Mississippi Accountability Model.”

Green is relocating his family to Vicksburg and will begin his work at Warren Central July 1.

Wooten, a 17-year education veteran, said he is excited to join the Redwood family.

“I was a football and track and field coach at [Warren Central], and I’ve taught PE and biology,” he said. “I’ve been assistant principal at Warren Central for five years.”

Wooten, a native of Vicksburg, said he is excited to be a part of the proud history of Redwood.

“I look forward to getting to know the teachers better,” he said. “A lot of good teachers have been there for a while.”

Wooten said he knows the school has been and will continue to be a big part of the Redwood community.

“I’m just excited about where I’m going,” he said. “I’m proud of where I’ve been, and I just look forward to being a part of the Redwood community and hitting the ground running.”

Shealy said Wooten was popular among the committee who chose him.

“Mr. Wooten was a crowd favorite for the interview committee,” he said. “Buddy was unanimously chosen as the new principal of Redwood.”

Shealy said Wooten’s experience as a veteran administrator will be useful during his next venture.

“He brings multiple years of experience to the table and a solid commitment to the community,” he said. “I am very excited to see Mr. Wooten take the next step in his administrative career.”