George Valadie

Mr. George Valadie was born in Chattanooga, TN, to Joe and Becky Valadie. Mr. Valadie attended Our Lady of Perpetual Help School in Chattanooga and graduated from Notre Dame High School Chattanooga, where he met the love of his life, Nancy, who worked at SBA as our receptionist from 2001-2013. George and Nancy have been married for over 44 years and are proud parents of Katy Cottle, Meg Dunn, and Sarah Garrett (SBA ’04). After high school, Mr. Valadie went on to the University of Notre Dame where he earned a BA in Sociology and later attended the University of Tennessee Chattanooga where he received his MA in Secondary Administration. 

While Mr. Valadie didn’t join SBA until the fall of 1999, our community’s first introduction to him was actually the year before. Sondra Morris and Sharon Masterson headed up to Rhode Island for a conference on Catholic Schools Enrollment programs. Morris and Masterson both noted a Principal from a Catholic School in Vicksburg, MS, that kept asking questions. Little did they know, that man would be their boss for the next 14 years. 

However, the title “boss” does not accurately describe George Valadie. Visionary leader, compassionate friend, and innovative educator are more apt. George Valadie served as President of St. Benedict at Auburndale during a period of unprecedented growth from 1999-2013. Shepherding the expansion of the high school, Valadie oversaw the design and construction of our current campus on its 47 beautiful acres. Under his tutelage, SBA educated around 1,000 students annually, sharing the mission and vision of Catholic education with an entire generation of Eagles. His favorite memories of that time are numerous, including watching students participate in many games, contests, matches, plays, musicals, concerts, and pep rallies, celebrating 14 graduation weekends (the last of which earned him an honorary SBA diploma), watching students support the annual holiday food drive, seeing the students adopt and befriend the students of the Sr. Ruth Ann Schmitt Program, witnessing our campus and enrollment grow, attending the wedding of one his daughters in our school’s chapel; but most of all, Mr. Valadie remembers the people – students, faculty, parents, and friends. 

During his final year at SBA, Mr. Valadie often told the story of a young boy invited to help lead the Opening Procession of the Beijing Olympics. The young boy had saved fellow students from a fire, citing that he was “just doing his job as a hall monitor.” Similarly, Mr. Valadie describes his time at SBA as “the sort of place where students come together to make great - if not miraculous - things happen. It was an honor to have been a small part.” However, his part, as we all know, was not small, and he did much more than simply meet his job description. Mr. Valadie steered our ship through 14 years of incredible growth and inspired thousands of students to live their faith as the cornerstone of their lives. The part he and Nacy played was great and their impact was more than they can imagine. 

In 2013, Mr. Valadie moved back to his hometown of Chattanooga to assume the role of President at his alma mater, Notre Dame High School. He retired from that role last Spring and is in the midst of enjoying his first year of retirement. In addition to his work as an educator, Mr. Valadie has served as a featured columnist in diocesan publications across the south and has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Diocese of Memphis’ Christ the Teacher Award, Notre Dame High School’s Distinguished Alumnus and Jim D. Phifer Service to School Awards, and the Chattanooga Jaycees’ Outstanding Young Educator Award.