Longtime Hoover High assistant principal retiring

Charles Butler, who spent the past nine years as an assistant principal at Hoover High School, said he is retiring, effective July 1.

Butler started his education career as a teacher at Pelham High School. After seven years in the classroom, he spent four years as an assistant principal at Montevallo High School before coming to Hoover High in August 2007.

Butler started out as the assistant principal overseeing the sophomore class but more recently has been in charge of career tech opportunities, including all the career academies, the family and consumer science program, television and broadcast program and work-based learning, commonly known as co-op education.

When asked why he is retiring, Butler said “sometimes you just know when it’s time. I just felt like I need to do something different.”

The most rewarding aspect of his job has been seeing students grow and develop into young men and women and develop skills that will make them successful in life, he said. He especially has enjoyed working with students who do not want to go to college and those who don’t believe they can do something and find out that they can, he said.

“I just want all the kids to be able to do well,” he said.

Butler said he’s not yet sure what he’ll do in retirement, but he may volunteer to read to young students. “I just want to do something to give back to students,” he said.