ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, October 20, 1996 TAG: 9610210002
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JOEL TURNER STAFF WRITER
BOB PATTERSON HAS MAINTAINED HIS playing weight from his days as a college quarterback, partly by always being on the go at William Byrd High School.
Bob Patterson never rests.
On a recent morning, he got to William Byrd High School at 7:30, before students arrived. He'd already been up nearly two hours - walked three miles and done dozens of push-ups and sit-ups before breakfast.
When Patterson reached his office, he sorted and handed out the morning mail for teachers, held a conference with a teacher and talked with a student about a discipline issue before the buses began arriving.
Then he went to the lobby and chatted with students while they waited for the first bell to ring at the Vinton school.
"Let's go, fellows. That's the warning bell," he told several students who lingered after the bell. "Let's get to class on time."
As the school's principal, Patterson stays on the go throughout the school day: visiting classes, meeting with teachers and students, taking phone calls, and conferring with other principals in the Vinton area, among other duties.
Usually, he goes home about 4:30 or 5 - long after the students have departed. He often returns at night for football, basketball and other games. He travels to most of the school's away games, too.
He also attends students' plays, concerts and other activities. He goes to Roanoke County School Board meetings frequently, and he attends many civic club meetings.
Patterson puts in 60 or more hours on the job most weeks at the 1,050-student school.
And he's been doing it for 31 years. It's believed to be the longest tenure for a Virginia high school principal in recent history.
"I don't know of anyone else who's been at a school that long," said Randy Barrack, executive director of the Virginia Association of Secondary School Principals.
Kit Reavis, a teacher at William Byrd, said Patterson has been principal there for her entire life.
"I find it incredible when I think about it sometimes," said Reavis, who has been a special-education teacher at the school for six years.
Patterson recently turned 60, but he shows no signs of letting up. He works almost as many hours now as he did when he became principal in 1965. At 29, he was one of the youngest high school principals in the state.
"He's going as fast today as in 1965," said Steve Lonker, principal of William Byrd Middle School. "Bob is one of those rare individuals who truly loves his work."
Patterson has maintained his playing weight - 175 pounds - since his days as a quarterback at East Carolina College in Greenville, N.C., where he also ran the quarter-and half-mile on the track team.
Some of his track records still stand at East Carolina because the school keeps them separately for the years before it became a university.
Patterson walks and exercises every day. He said it helps give him the energy to maintain his hectic schedule.
He has outlasted all of the teachers who were at William Byrd when he became principal. They've either retired or taken jobs in other schools. He has worked for four school superintendents.
Patterson has seen nearly 8,000 students graduate, which he describes as one of the rewards of being a principal.
He especially likes graduation ceremonies because he gets to see many former William Byrd graduates who have become the parents of new graduates.
For many people in Vinton, Patterson is William Byrd High School, said David Blevins, a former assistant principal at the school.
"He looks out for the school as if it were his home," said Blevins, now principal at Hidden Valley Junior High. "He's very attached to the school and community."
Patterson has worked for the county school system for nearly four decades. He began as a science teacher and assistant football coach at the former Andrew Lewis High in Salem in 1958. While at Andrew Lewis, he also served as chairman of the science department, guidance director, athletic director, track and cross country coach, adviser for several student clubs and assistant principal before moving to William Byrd.
At the stage in his career when most people are looking ahead to retirement, Patterson has shown a new burst of energy, Roanoke County Superintendent Deanna Gordon said.
He recently began taking a computer class, and he's constantly working on new programs for his school, she said.
Those who know Patterson say he stays energetic and youthful because he maintains a positive attitude.
"His enthusiasm has never waned," said former Superintendent Bayes Wilson. "He seems to care just as much about instructional programs and activities for students now as ever."
He is known for his "Golden Attitude pins," which are stuck on a coat lapel to encourage a "cheerful, positive attitude" for everyone. He got the idea for the pins at a national principal's convention years ago.
While education is a serious business for Patterson, he is also known to be a practical joker and to have a strong sense of humor.
He has a reputation for enforcing the rules. But he's never rude, and he doesn't get angry, students said.
"He knows how to keep control. He knows when to lay down the law," said Katie Reich, a junior. "But his door is always open, and he's accessible."
"He's got the E.F. Hutton demeanor: When he speaks, people listen," said Michael Stovall, vice chairman of the Roanoke County School Board and a 1980 William Byrd graduate.
Students are given 30 minutes of detention for such offenses as being late for class or talking in class. They can serve detention before or after school or during lunch.
Students who accumulate several detentions or have more serious violations are assigned to "Saturday School." They are required to attend school from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on a Saturday.
"I thought this would be a good way to work with students instead of suspending them. I'd rather have them in school," he said.
Patterson spends a lot of time observing classes.
On a recent morning, he spent an hour in teacher Carolyn Cecil's world geography class and took notes. Later he pointed out what he liked about the way she taught and made suggestions for changes.
Patterson visited 20 classes in September, about average for him.
Cecil, who has taught at the school more than two decades, said Patterson views the faculty and school almost as a family.
"He's a family-oriented person and he remembers the names of teachers' children and asks about them," she said.
"He's the type of principal that when you hear he's going to work for another six to seven years, it's music to your ears," Stovall said.
Patterson has no plans to retire nor has he set any target date. "As long as I'm healthy and have the energy, this is what I want to do."
Vinton Mayor Charles Hill said he's never heard anyone "knock Bob Patterson or say anything negative about him."
None of the two dozen people interviewed for this story would say anything unfavorable about him.
"He's a hands-on principal. Some principals go into their office, shut the door and stay there," Cecil said. "He's out in the school talking to people."
Patterson thinks athletics and extracurricular activities are important because they motivate students and help them feel good about themselves.
William Byrd has won more than half a dozen state championships in different sports during his tenure. A wall in the school gymnasium is filled with banners for district and regional championships.
Years ago, he created a Hall of Fame for the school - a hallway wall where pictures of students and teachers who have won state recognition for achievement in academics, athletics and other activities are displayed.
Patterson said he is just as proud of the academic achievements of William Byrd students as the athletic successes. This past year's graduates won more than $1 million in college scholarships.
Patterson is a member of the Vinton Baptist Church where he has been a deacon, brotherhood president and Sunday school director. He has taught Sunday school for more than 30 years.
He said one reason he stayed at William Byrd is that Vinton is a church-oriented community. "The majority of parents and students go to church. I can't say enough about the community."
A former Father of the Year for Education in the Roanoke Valley, Patterson has three grown children, all of whom are involved in education.
One daughter is a kindergarten teacher in Montgomery County, Md., and another daughter is doing post-doctoral research and study at Yale University. His son is an electrical engineer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
Patterson has received offers to become principal at other schools and to go into other types of work with higher pay, but he never seriously considered leaving William Byrd.
"It would take me away from the young people I dearly love being around, " Patterson said. "I didn't want to leave."
LENGTH: Long : 161 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: NHAT MEYER/Staff Bob Patterson, principal of Williamby CNBByrd High School, grabs a folder off his desk as junior Loree
Martin, 16, uses his phone. Letting students use his office phone
for personal calls is just one example of how Patterson earns and
keeps the respect of everyone at the school. KEYWORDS: PROFILE