As the NC community starts off the 2022-2023 school year, they welcome two new assistant principals: Tonya Polk and Mark Giles. Motivated by their love for students and working in a learning environment, Polk and Giles walked into the school with magnetic personalities that will make a lasting impression on NC. 

Giles came to NC after teaching business and coaching girl’s basketball at Sprayberry High School for 15 years then taking on a similar role at Hillgrove High School. NC’s athletic department head, Matt Williams, coached against Giles at one point, as the rivalry between the two schools remains fierce. Giles’ love for sports overruled his life as he became an athletic director shortly thereafter. As much as Giles carries a passion for teaching and coaching, there came a desire for change which fostered his move to NC as an assistant principal. Not only did he wish to expand his horizons, but he wanted to find a unique way that he could impact students. 

“Mr. Moody and the rest of the admin team made me want to come to NC. Mr. Moody used to be an athletic director at Harrison, so I am very familiar with him, Coach Williams and Mr. Bell. There are a lot of good guys and people here. NC is very similar to Sprayberry and I really enjoyed my time there. Hillgrove is a little different; so it’s good that I came back to something that I’m a little more comfortable with and enjoy the kids a little more. I love teaching, and I love coaching but there comes a time for change. I love being around kids, so it’s just a different way you can impact them,” Giles said. 

Aside from his work life, Giles labels himself as a proud husband, father of two sons and a golden retriever dad. One of his sons attends the University of Georgia, while the other Woodstock High School. 

After holding a career in education for 17 years, NC graciously welcomed Tonya Polk as an administrator with open arms. After kicking off her teaching career in Dekalb County, she came to Cobb County School District (CCSD). Polk then worked at the district level for special education and realized working outside of a school did not match her career goal, which included interacting with a variety of students. To make this a reality, she served as an administrator at Pebblebrook High School for four years. Similar to Giles, she needed a change, resulting in her transfer to NC. Before entering the field of education, Polk worked for General Motives but did not enjoy office jobs at all. Working with children in her church and community sparked an epiphany. 

“Working with students is my passion, it is what brings me joy outside of my personal family. As an assistant principal, I just felt like I could reach more students and have more interactions with students in the whole school as opposed to just the classroom. It has been a great experience, I would not want to do anything else,” Polk said.