Karen Hughes, 45, was a member of the first graduating class at Ridgeland High School in 1990 and a player on the school’s first state championship softball team.
When she was named principal at Ridgeland earlier this summer, one of the first things Hughes did was test the combination on her old locker. It didn’t work, but Hughes says her homecoming has been a sweet experience, nonetheless.
Karen Hughes, Ridgeland High School’s new principal, points out her photo in the school’s very first graduating class.
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Walk into the commons area at Ridgeland and there she is, on the bottom row of the Class of 1990 photo montage. She was Karen Wooden back then. Big hair. Big smile. Big plans.
“Once a Panther always a Panther,” said Hughes, who still carries herself like an athlete with a slight forward lean that suggests she could break into a run at any moment.
Karen and her classmates were the first to occupy Ridgeland, the fancy new comprehensive high school built in the shadow of Lookout Mountain at the close of the 1980s.