Mr. Jim Wells will be honored as an extraordinary educator and ambassador for Agricultural Science. Cherokee High School has decided to dedicate the CTE Building in his honor and name it the Jim Wells CTE Building. When we broke the news to Mr. Wells, we told him that it is immeasurable to say the ripple effect he has had on so many individuals not only here at Cherokee, but at the State and National Levels of competition within Agricultural Sciences. We have had many letters of recommendation sent in to support this decision to our Hawkins County School Board that unanimously agreed to naming the building after him. Below are just a few of the many accomplishments Mr. Wells has made during his time at Cherokee High School and beyond. We are without a doubt honored to invite anyone to attend the reveal ceremony on 5/23/23 at 5 PM to begin in the Commons of the main building at Cherokee High School. We hope that anyone that knows and has been influenced by Mr. Wells can join us that day in celebrating and honoring him and his many accomplishments.
In High School he was on an FFA soil judging team that made it to nationals. He began his teaching career at Rogersville High School in 1967 and Cherokee High School in 1978. He retired from teaching in 2006. He was responsible for leading a dozen National Title-Winning soil judging teams and guiding others to top awards in parliamentary law, ag-mechanics, and public speaking. He also served as Vice President and President of the Hawkins County Teachers Association during his time as an educator as well. Along with that he served as Secretary and Vice President of the Tennessee Teachers Association. He also held the office of Vice President of the National Association of Agricultural Educators, Board member of both the National FFA Alumni Council, and UT College of Education Admissions. Also, at UT he was the UT College of Agriculture Alumni council member, Member of the TN Governor's Council for Agricultural and Forestry, TN Soil Conservation Committee, and National Council for Agricultural Education. He has served as President of the Hawkins County Farm Bureau as well as Coordinator for all the career development events at TN FFA Convention, and also served as Board member of the Hawkins Farmers Cooperative Board of Directors.