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Education Alumni Profiles: Bruce Orr (’97)
January 01, 2020
"I feel like I wake up on the mission field every morning and genuinely get a chance
to live God’s plan that He has for me."
Bruce Orr always had Ouachita in mind as his first college choice. He went on an overnight visit and became hooked from the very moment.
After graduating from Ouachita, Bruce worked at Camp Winnamocka and through this experience discovered just how much he enjoyed being around kids. Looking back over his 19 years in the education profession, he noticed that everything was for a purpose. “Each school was a valuable learning experience where many fantastic educators took time to mentor me along the way.”
In 2011, Bruce was named the Arkansas MetLife Principal of the Year. Under his leadership, Lakeside became one of the thirteen schools named to the Outstanding High School list in the US and the first Arkansas school to gain this distinction.
When asked how OBU prepared him for his career, Bruce stated “I believe the well-rounded education I received at Ouachita allowed me to pursue various jobs in public education. I was very involved in many leadership opportunities within Rho Sigma that have served me well in my career as a leader.”
When thinking of his favorite OBU Education Program memory, Bruce recalls his interactions with his professors. “I was not a number or statistic to them. They knew everything about me and continued to keep up with me years after I graduated.”
For his favorite P-12 classroom memory, Bruce reminisced about an interesting exchange with a student. “I remember one time early in my career that I arm wrestled a student for who was going to run the class. Thank goodness I won or I may have had a very short career.”
For prospective and current teacher education candidates, Bruce offered some words of advice. “We need you! Many students are coming to school with a multitude of needs each day. They need food, clothes, health care, mental health services, lessons on citizenship, how to treat others, and don't forget to teach them to read, write, and think for themselves! Our kids need us now more than ever!”
Thank you, Bruce Orr, for being a life changing educator!
Bruce Orr:
- Class of 1997
- Bachelor of Science in Education - Ouachita Baptist University
- MSE Educational Leadership - Henderson State University
- Biology and earth science teacher, coach, principal, assistant superintendent - Hope, Lake Hamilton and Lakeside School Districts
- Arkansas MetLife Principal of the Year - 2010-2011
Bruce Orr always had Ouachita in mind as his first college choice. He went on an overnight visit and became hooked from the very moment.
After graduating from Ouachita, Bruce worked at Camp Winnamocka and through this experience discovered just how much he enjoyed being around kids. Looking back over his 19 years in the education profession, he noticed that everything was for a purpose. “Each school was a valuable learning experience where many fantastic educators took time to mentor me along the way.”
In 2011, Bruce was named the Arkansas MetLife Principal of the Year. Under his leadership, Lakeside became one of the thirteen schools named to the Outstanding High School list in the US and the first Arkansas school to gain this distinction.
When asked how OBU prepared him for his career, Bruce stated “I believe the well-rounded education I received at Ouachita allowed me to pursue various jobs in public education. I was very involved in many leadership opportunities within Rho Sigma that have served me well in my career as a leader.”
When thinking of his favorite OBU Education Program memory, Bruce recalls his interactions with his professors. “I was not a number or statistic to them. They knew everything about me and continued to keep up with me years after I graduated.”
For his favorite P-12 classroom memory, Bruce reminisced about an interesting exchange with a student. “I remember one time early in my career that I arm wrestled a student for who was going to run the class. Thank goodness I won or I may have had a very short career.”
For prospective and current teacher education candidates, Bruce offered some words of advice. “We need you! Many students are coming to school with a multitude of needs each day. They need food, clothes, health care, mental health services, lessons on citizenship, how to treat others, and don't forget to teach them to read, write, and think for themselves! Our kids need us now more than ever!”
Thank you, Bruce Orr, for being a life changing educator!
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