Jim has a long career as a teacher and administrator. Starting as a Special Education Teacher at the High School level, he taught academics to high school students with a variety of disabilities. In 1996 he was trained and began to use Direct Instruction programs as an Elementary Special Education teacher, teaching 3^rd and 4^th grades students using Reading Mastery. Over the next 7 years, he taught Special Education at the Middle and Elementary levels. In 2003 Jim began as Assistant Principal at Lost River Elementary in Bowling Green, Kentucky. From 2005 until 2018 he was the principal at Lost River. In 2005 Lost River was recognized by the US Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School. Jim shifted over to becoming a Reading Mastery Coach in 2018 and continues in that role at Dawson Spring Elementary in Dawson, Kentucky. He has extensive training in DI programs, as well as DI Leadership, Coaching, and Teacher Training.