By Martin Couch
Anyone who talks to Mark Scarlett about Salem Elementary can hear the pride he feels for his[more] school in his voice.
Scarlett, who is a 1985 Bryant graduate, says there are many events that are taking place at Salem Elementary that benefit its many students.
"Besides our wonderful PTO meeting monthly, we are getting ready for our chess tournament," he said. "We will also be having informative meetings over the new Federal Curriculum called "Common Core" that will begin to be implemented starting next year in grades kindergarten through second. This will be a major change for parents and students and we have to keep our parents up to date on what is coming for their child.
"We are also getting ready for Benchmark testing in April," Scarlett continued. "Salem students have performed at the highest levels in the district and state the last three years and we are ready to prove we are the best in the state again."
That's just a snapshot of what is coming for Salem, which became the first elementary school outside of the original Bryant campus some 30 years ago.
As for Scarlett, Salem students couldn't have a better principal in the words of many parents and faculty members.
Upon his graduation from Bryant, he attended the University of Central Arkansas for a major in biology.
"I had no thoughts of teaching back then, but it worked out this way," he said. "I guess you come to an epiphany of sorts and I liked the idea of going into education. There was a professor of mine, Dr. Freely, who was a former pilot in the Vietnam war, told me that I'd be a good educator."
And so Scarlett took the path of education and landed a teaching job in the Little Rock School District before being hired on at Bryant.
"I had never thought about coming back to Bryant, but I got hired on here and I've never looked back," he said. "Bryant is a wonderful place."
As the years progressed, Scarlett moved into administration as an assistant principal at Bryant Elementary first before coming to Salem.
"It was really by accident and good timing that I ended up here," he added. "I had a strength in discipline and (former superintendent) Dr. (Richard) Abernathy thought I'd be a good fit at Salem as an assistant. Over the progression of time, I moved into the principal position."
Scarlett, while at Bryant, was not only a teacher, but also a coach for the Lady Hornets basketball team, and helped out with the track teams, as well.
"Coaching helped me when I came into administration," Scarlett said. "I'm a very family-oriented person and I've got the best of both worlds."
Scarlett's wife Karen is an English teacher at Bryant High School. His oldest daughter Kristen is 16 and plays for the Bryant Lady Hornets basketball team, his daughter Kelsi is in the sixth grade and son Cameron is in the third grade at Salem.
"In the future, I want to raise my kids and play lots of golf and travel," he said.
For now though, Scarlett is all Bryant blue.
"Nearly every stitch of clothing I have is Bryant blue," he said. "From the announcing at Friday night football games, softball, basketball and all the other stuff, we're all about Bryant all the time."
