Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, November 29, 1994 TAG: 9411290071
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: MELISSA DeVAUGHN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Age: 57
Family: Two grown children, Robin and Rich. His wife, Jo Ann , works as a secretary at Falling Branch Elementary School in Christiansburg.
Hometown: Born in a small West Virginia community called Ballengee (named after the Ballengee family) but he grew up in Blacksburg.
Most memorable teacher: "That would be Miss Margaret Beeks, my seventh-grade teacher. She instilled a sense of responsibility in me and she made me treasurer of my class."
Worst subject in school: "Math. I didn't see the connections, so I didn't bother doing it."
Best subject in school: "Literature. I'll let you in on a little secret - I read Shakespeare for pleasure."
Hobbies: Gardening, fishing and golf
Richard Ballengee has seen many changes in Montgomery County Schools since he began as a vocational education teacher in 1963, but one thing has always remained the same, he says.
"Young people need to see the value of what they're learning or they won't care about learning at all."
Ballengee, now 57 and working part time as an instructional supervisor at the school board office, is probably best known for his 18-year post as principal at Christiansburg Middle School. However, the polite and soft-spoken Virginia Tech graduate has been involved in just about every aspect of public education.
It started when he met professor Lucy Crawford while he was a student at Tech. Crawford encouraged Ballengee to pursue teaching. Straight out of college, he followed Crawford's advice and took his first teaching job.
Later Ballengee became assistant principal of Christiansburg High School, principal of Christiansburg Elementary School, and finally settled in as principal at the new Christiansburg Middle School.
"I don't think there's anything more gratifying than being principal of a school," Ballengee said. "I really miss the children and the daily interaction. It's not easy to get along with middle schoolers - you really have to like it."
Nowadays, you might find Richard Ballengee out in the community, seeking business-school partnerships, supervising the public cannery in Riner or helping out with the adult vocational education program. In fact, Ballengee was recently honored with an Excellence in Education award from Virginia Tech for his role in creating the adult education program.
Now in his 32nd year as an educator, Richard Ballengee is still going strong.
by CNB