Bulloch County Schools named Zach Barrow as its Teacher of the Year in a surprise reveal in his classroom Wednesday morning.

Raised by educators, the eighth-grade Georgia Studies teacher at William James Middle School advocates for public education and the teaching profession. He was one of 15 nominees for this year's district title. He will now represent Bulloch County in Georgia's Teacher of the Year program in May 2027, and may advance to the national contest in January 2028.

"Mr. Barrow is a gifted educator, and we are thrilled that others are able to see and recognize what we've always known," said Dr. John McAfee, principal of William James Middle School.

As the district’s top teacher, Barrow will receive a $3,000 cash prize sponsored by Parker’s Fueling the Community Program, NFP Insurance Brokers and the Bulloch County Foundation for Public Education.

Barrow and the other nominees will be further honored at a banquet in October, where the county's runner-up and other top-four finalists will be revealed.

"As the son of two lifetime educators, I have spent my entire life in a school," Barrow said in the biography he submitted as part of his application. "My journey to the teaching profession began both as a moral obligation and a fulfillment of a duty to my community. I consider myself extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to serve the students of Bulloch County each day.”
Barrow’s path to William James Middle School began when he was a Georgia Southern University student completing a practicum course and paired with an educator at the school.

While leading classroom instruction one day, he impressed the school's former principal, Dr. Scott Chapman, who was observing the classroom. Chapman partnered with school district and university leaders to develop an actionable plan to hire Barrow full-time as a sixth-grade teacher on a provisional certificate while he was still in college and have his classroom service count toward his student-teaching requirements.

A previous surprise

When Barrow's college graduation day finally arrived on Dec. 13, 2022, he chose teaching over walking the stage, prompting faculty and students at William James to surprise him with a graduation ceremony in the school's cafeteria.

Explaining his decision then, Barrow said, "I believe I've been classroom ready for 10 years even if my age didn't show it. I realized this is my life now. It's not at Georgia Southern. It's here at William James."

Now 25 years old, Barrow said he believes teaching is not simply a career choice. It is a lifelong calling.

His parents are two career educators, now with the Montgomery County Schools, Dr. Scott Barrow, an assistant superintendent and Melissa Barrow, a high school social studies teacher.

So his immersion in public education, from helping organize supplies as a young child to operating the school copier during pre-planning days, built a strong foundation early in life, Barrow said. While attending high school, he completed the Teaching as a Profession pathway, learning the mechanics of instructional plans and classroom management before ever stepping into a college lecture hall.

"I have spent my entire life in a schoolhouse, with both of my parents serving as public school educators long before I was born," Barrow shared in his application. "At 6 years old, I asked my mother who RESA (Regional Educational Service Agency) was, and why she had so many supplies. At 10, while most kids were enjoying their last days sleeping in, I was learning to use the staple function in the copier during pre-planning.

“At 16, I was lucky enough to experience having my mother as my economics teacher while my father served as my principal,” he wrote. “Growing up immersed in public education shaped who I am."
After four years with Bulloch County Schools, Barrow has earned a reputation for combining rigorous academic expectations with genuine student engagement.

In addition to his bachelor’s degree from Georgia Southern, Barrow holds a master’s degree in Middle Grades Education from Albany State University and is currently completing a specialist degree in Teacher Leadership from Valdosta State University. He has served as a grade-level chairperson and a member of his school's leadership team since 2023.

Beyond his daily work in the classroom, Barrow said he is an advocate for the teaching profession, emphasizing the critical importance of educator mentorship, support, and retention. From high school through his early teaching career, Barrow has both experienced and benefited from strong teacher mentorship.

"When veteran teachers invest in those just beginning their careers, they help transform passion into perseverance," Barrow shared in his Teacher of the Year application. "We must also celebrate the purpose, joy, and impact that first called us to teaching. The next generation of educators is watching us."

Coach with spirit

Wednesday morning’s surprise reveal took place, fittingly, at the start of William James Middle School’s shortened but intense Spirit Week. The Labor Day holiday Monday had been followed by an “in service” workday for Bulloch County Schools faculty and staff Tuesday, so students were returning from a four-day weekend.

With class in session, the TV camera people and a newspaper photographer invaded the classroom first along with Principal McAfee on some generic pretext about featuring good work at the school. School district Public Relations Director Hayley Greene, who organized the surprise, was following with a bushel of balloons and a bouquet of candy.

Then Superintendent White came in cheering, “Good morning, Coach Barrow, you are the Bulloch County Teacher of the Year!” Students applauded.

As William James Middle School’s assistant athletic director, Barrow helps with the logistics of various sports competitions and is currently head golf coach. Incidentally, the WJMS Knights homecoming football game against the Langston Chapel Blue Devils was held Wednesday evening after school.

As Barrow told the Statesboro Herald, he is also sponsor of the school’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes, leading voluntary Bible studies.

Before the surprises were complete in the Georgia Studies classroom Wednesday, both of Barrow’s parents came in and gave their son congratulatory hugs. So did his fiancée, Nicky Murtha, a senior-year Georgia Southern University student majoring in public relations. Their wedding is set for November.

Clearly, it’s a life landmark semester for Coach Barrow.

State contender

For a district teacher of the year, the next bracket is a challenge. With about 180 public school districts of widely varying sizes in Georgia, a statewide win is an honor that does not come around to every district in a lifetime.

But Bulloch County has had two Georgia Teachers of the Year. Jemelleh Coes, then at Langston Chapel Middle School, was selected locally in the 2012-2013 school year and went on to become Georgia’s 2014 Teacher of the Year. Back in 1985, Julie Lanier of the former Marvin Pittman Laboratory School won the state honor.

Bulloch has seen at least three more of its county Teachers of the Year make it into the statewide top 10: Ashleigh Wright of Southeast Bulloch High School most recently, in 2024; Ashlee Mitchell of Stilson Elementary School in 2012; and Tiffany Todd, then of Southeast Bulloch High School, in 2010.

All 15 schools’ top teachers

The Bulloch County school-level Teachers of the Year for 2026-2027 are Ciara Sims of Brooklet Elementary, Melissa Bazemore of Julia P. Bryant Elementary, Grayson Ray of Langston Chapel Elementary, Taylor Elkins of Langston Chapel Middle, Colleen Winslette of Mattie Lively Elementary;

Katina Archie of Mill Creek Elementary, Haven Ackerman of Nevils Elementary, Sarah Earls of Portal Elementary, John Hendrix of Portal Middle High, Elise Gottlieb of Sallie Zetterower Elementary, Anna Swint of Southeast Bulloch Middle, Diana Johnson of Southeast Bulloch High, Raymond Mendoza of Statesboro High and Joanna Mosely of Stilson Elementary, as well as Zach Barrow of William James Middle.