TY ATKINS

Hello, my name is TY Atkins. I am excited and honored to be the new administrator/principal at Mother Lode Christian School. When I think about it, I have been either a student or a teacher for most of my life. I have been a student at all levels – from kindergarten at Twain Harte Elementary school, through public elementary and high school in Oceanside, California. After that, I studied architecture at USC, double-majored in Bible and Literature at Westmont College; earned multiple and single subject Teaching Credentials through USF; and received a California Administrative credential at CSU Stanislaus. All that adds up to spending fifty-seven years of my life as either a student, a teacher, or a principal. Yikes! That’s a lot of school.

Most of my teaching career has been at Summerville Elementary in Tuolumne. For nineteen years I taught 6th-8th grade, and then the last eight years I was principal. I have lots of good memories of my years at Summerville. It’s a good school with great staff, students, and families. However, for me there was always an important piece missing.

My life as a teacher started right after graduating from Westmont College. I hitchhiked from Santa Barbara to Tuolumne for an interview with Rex Heath at Mother Lode Christian School. An hour later I was hired to teach my first class – a 3rd/4th combo. I’ve always had fond memories of my eight years at Mother Lode. The common bond of Christian education I experienced with staff, the students, and families provided a strong foundation to my career. Jesus was always at the center of MLCS staff prayers, worship, and teaching.

Since moving to Tuolumne County in 1975, I have served in teaching and multiple leadership positions in local churches. Since the day I was saved and born again in 1971, my life goal has been to follow, honor, and serve Jesus with all that I am. These years of service ultimately led to being ordained as a minister of the gospel in the spring of 1999.

As God would have it and as unexpected as it is, here I am back at MLCS again. I am excited to once again be a part of an educational environment that has Jesus at the center of all we do! As staff, students, and parents, I am looking forward to growing together in our love for God and in His love for us. There is nothing more important than building our lives on the truth of God’s Word. It is the lens through which all other learning must be understood.

Finally, a huge part of who I am is my family. My wife of forty-four years, Pat, also taught with me at Mother Lode in those early years. Together we have enjoyed the blessing of raising four wonderful children here in Tuolumne – Thomas, Daniel, Patrick, and Hope. For a couple who was not planning on having children, the blessing of now having eleven awesome grandkids is over-the-top fantastic. I’m looking forward to snowboarding, surfing, and/or horse pack trips up into the Emigrant Wilderness with all of them!