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Posted on: 12/6/24
The journey to leading Rea Farms STEAM Academy as the school’s principal wasn’t a journey Brooklyn Hough thought she would take. In fact, she originally went to school for business to pursue a job in marketing.
But after a couple of classes, Hough said she knew her calling wasn’t in business. Her college roommate was studying education, so Hough gave it a try and made a switch to elementary education. She started volunteering with an after school program at Sterling Elementary. After the switch, Hough became more motivated as she found her true passion.
Now, after 18 years in education, there’s no other place she’d rather be.
“I think I am surprised that this is where I’ve gone in my career,” said Hough. “But I can’t imagine myself doing anything else.”
Hough’s first teaching job was at Smithfield Elementary as a fourth grade teacher. She recalled a former English teacher of hers helping her set up her classroom when she pointed out that she spelled “grammar” wrong on the board.
“I thought it was the funniest word for me to spell incorrectly,” said Hough. “But she was super helpful. Even starting on my first day, I already had support from CMS teachers. She was the best writing teacher.”
Hough held several positions in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools including a literacy facilitator, transition program coordinator, dean of students and assistant principal. She even returned to her alma mater of Myers Park High School where she was the dean of students.
“There were probably 10 teachers left who had been there when I was there and a few of them said ‘wait a minute, she’s not our boss. She’s not doing observations’ and I was like ‘fair enough,’” laughed Hough. “But they were very helpful when I got there and supportive.”
The teachers she had along the way are the ones Hough said shaped her into the educator she is now, even when she didn’t think she would go into education.
She also has several teachers who still work in the district that she communicates with regularly, including her former middle school teacher Avery Mitchell, data records technician, and David Switzer, executive director of Building Services, who taught U.S. History.
“They both had relationships with kids and cared about getting to know who you were,” said Hough. “And because they took an interest and were excited in their classrooms, you wanted to go to their class.”
Hough takes those experiences she had as a student — the relationships she built with teachers and the support she felt from them — and applies them to how she works with her students, staff and families.
“Every day I wake up, and just like anybody else who’s going to go to work for the day, you’re tired and there’s a lot going on, but all I have to do is think about everybody who’s waiting for me here and how important my role is, our teachers’ roles in our lives, our country, and our world, and it’s energizing to come to work,” she said. “If you’re having a moment in your day where you’re thinking you need a day off, you walk down to kindergarten and you remember your why. What we’re teaching our students here, those real-life skills and career paths it’s important and helps them decide who they want to become.”
Looking to the future, Hough said she is content in her role as principal. She moved her twin daughters to Rea Farms and loves being able to spend more time with them throughout the day.
