Ryan DuBose is one of those people that has what seems to be a constant sense of joy. As a former student of his, I've been able to witness, firsthand, the way he utilizes that joy to make a difference in his student's lives.
From the outside looking in, the sheer amount of dedication and loyalty that DuBose has to both his job and his family might go unnoticed. However, in the following article, I hope to shed some light on the man we've grown to know and love as - Principal DuBose.
The Backstory
Before he became 'Principal DuBose', a 5:00am CrossFit regular, a husband, or a father - he was just...Ryan.
Ryan, a native of Orange, TX, spent his younger years amassing himself within his studies while also making plenty of time to stand out on the track. He graduated from Orangefield high school where he would both graduate 4th in class and run a 49 second 400m dash - an impressive feat.
DuBose chose to pursue medicine at Lamar University where he received a full scholarship. While at Lamar he would become President of the Lamar Dental Society and even more impressive - win an intramural flag football championship with 'Dem Apples' (paying homage to a Matt Damon classic).
After graduating from Lamar with his bachelor's degree in Biology, DuBose still felt there was more he was destined for. He went back and completed a master's degree in Business and started out his career at a local credit union.
When asked about his time in college, DuBose responded with "I didn't have much direction. I thought I was going to pursue medicine but ended up not being as fulfilled by the coursework as I thought I would be. I knew I was supposed to be doing something different."
A Defining Moment
DuBose has never been one who sits around quietly, and when I asked him about his change of careers from medicine, to business, to now high school principal, he spoke with me about a defining moment that changed his life.
Fresh out of college, the teller position at the local credit union turned out to be quite a daunting one for a young DuBose.
While his intellectual capacity was more than sufficient to perform his daily tasks, he unfortunately had trouble sitting still. DuBose described a story in which he not once, not twice, but three times set off the silent alarm behind the teller's desk because he would accidentally hit it with his constantly swaying knee.
After losing his position as teller due to that final accidental alarm, a devastated DuBose began to seek out advice from his lifetime confidant - his mother.
While visiting his mother at her job at Orangefield high school, DuBose ran into the school's principal who was looking for a new full-time substitute for one of their classes.
"I was looking for my purpose, I knew I needed to make a change," said DuBose.
After a small deliberation, DuBose decided that the substitute role was exactly what he needed. The day of the final silent alarm was a day that defined the rest of his life.
One year later, after having worked a year as an educator, DuBose transferred to Little Cypress-Mauriceville and emphatically discovered that, "this is what he's meant to do!"
The rest is history.
A Day In The Life
After quickly rising up the ranks from coach, to vice principal, to junior high principal - DuBose now claims the title of Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School Principal.
His day starts around 4:00am when he wakes up and travels to his daily CrossFit workout with friends. DuBose arrives home around 6:30 in the morning just in time to spend the morning with his wife Kayla, and two year old daughter, Landry.
During a typical school day DuBose spends his mornings welcoming the students to campus with a smile. He says that showing he cares about each student by welcoming them with a smile is one of the most important parts of his day.
"You never know what each student is going through at home. So at school, the least I can do is give them a smile and show them that someone cares," DuBose said.
In addition to welcoming students, he tends to his administrative tasks as Principal and even takes some time to sweep the floor around campus.
When asked why he schedules time in his day for smaller tasks like sweeping and cleaning, DuBose said, ""If you don’t show kids how to do it or why it's important then they won't learn. If you want to make an impact then you have to walk the walk."
As a former coach, DuBose loves to attend sporting events around campus and support his students as they try to make the Battlin' Bear family proud. His presence around campus helps showcase a sense of pride and instills a culture of excellence within his students and faculty.
The end of his day is spent with his family. However, occasionally DuBose will stop at a local gym on his way home and play a few games in what he described as, "an old man basketball league."
His Mentor
Behind almost every successful character in every great story, there is a person they relied on to shape them into the successful person they are.
DuBose was lucky to have a mentor from the day he was born. Mike DuBose is the type of mentor that can only be described as extraordinary.
From the way DuBose exclaimed his love for his father, I can only begin to understand the passion with which Mike cared for his boys. Throughout every twist and turn in DuBose's life, his father was there to lead him in the right direction.
To this day, even after surviving cancer and raising three boys, Mike remains the constant in DuBose's life.
DuBose shared a story that speaks to the character and leadership of his father.
He stated that one day when he was just starting out in education, DuBose invited a few friends over for a barbecue. However, due to unforeseen circumstances everyone ended up not being able to come at the last minute. DuBose was stuck at his house with more barbecue than he knew what to do with and no one to share it with.
However, at 11:30pm that night, he got a knock on his door from none other than Mike DuBose. His father showed up stating nothing about the fact that people never showed up, but rather, that he was just hungry for Zummo's.
DuBose laughed when telling the story because he knows that no one drives over late at night just to ask for Zummo's. His father came there to spend time with his son and ensure that he was okay - the Zummo's were just a cover story to showcase how much he cared.
Growing up with a mentor and father like that surely helped DuBose become the man he is today and he agreed that he is grateful for having had that opportunity.
His Approach
When asked about a message he wants to share with his students ahead of the upcoming school year, DuBose responded with a quote from The Office.
"I wish there was a way to know you're in the good ol' days - before you've actually left them."
His message is that often times we don't stop and realize the moment that we are in and spend too much time focusing on either the past or the future. DuBose wants his students to spend the upcoming year focusing on the moment they are in and making the best of the time that they have at LCM High School.
He mentioned that never again will you get an opportunity to experience so much for so little. In addition to this, he stated how his students should try to be as involved as they can in everything that they can - play the sports they want to play, participate in the clubs they want to participate in, and make the change they want to see.
In addition, mental illness is a growing concern with all people, younger generations especially, and DuBose recognizes that his approach to leading his students should change with the times to combat this. He wants his students to know that who they are as a person is what matters the most, not necessarily what is posted about them online.
As far as Dubose - his goals for the upcoming school year are to be as involved as possible in both his students and his family's lives.
He stated, "I want to try and remember everything. Every moment of my daughter's life. Every award or game that our student's win. I want to do it all. I'll do my best."
Final Thoughts
Ryan DuBose is an exceptional leader and someone that I looked up to during my time in school. His approach to leading students walks the line between disciplinarian and lifelong friend - an approach that only works when executed by a leader with the personality of DuBose.
It was rewarding for me to get to interview DuBose after not having seen him in a few years and catch up on all of the big things happening back at LCM High School.
I hope this article serves as a place for people to read about and recognize the man behind the principal's desk and hopefully encourages others to lead with a similar passion.
If you know of anyone else you'd like me to interview and write a feature story about, please shoot me an email at "vinny.hale123@gmail.com" and include [BLOG] in the subject line.
Vin
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