LEGACY LUNCHEON

OUR 2023 HONOREE: BERNARD CHILDRESS

Bernard Childress is a Columbia native and served as the executive director of Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association (TSSAA) from 2009 to 2022. He was the first African American to serve at TSSAA in an executive position. He began with the organization as an assistant executive director in 1995. 

Bernard was instrumental in numerous milestones that have shaped the association, including becoming an early participant in the InSideOut Initiative, a partnership between TSSAA, the Tennessee Titans and the NFL Foundation. He also led the organization through the challenges it faced during the COVID pandemic, working with the association and its member schools, health professionals and the Governor’s office to develop safety protocols for student-athletes and fans. This ultimately led to the resumption of athletic participation among TSSAA member schools in the fall of 2020.

His goal as executive director of TSSAA was to give athletes an opportunity to perform on the best stage he could. He told The Tennessean, "I just have a weak spot for kids and want them to be successful.”

Bernard retired from TSSAA in July 2022 to spend more time with his family, especially his three grandchildren and his wife of more than 40 years, Pinkie Joyce Childress.

​​Bernard is a 1973 graduate of Columbia Central High School, where he was selected for the all-state basketball team in his junior and senior years. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Belmont University, where he was an all-conference basketball player for three seasons and served as captain during his senior year.

Prior to joining the TSSAA, Bernard served as a teacher, assistant principal and coach at Columbia Central High School, as well as a principal at Whitthorne Middle School. He was also the assistant men's basketball coach at Middle Tennessee State University.

Bernard has been an active member of the National Federation of State High School Associations and received the prestigious NFHS Citation Award in 2005. He was also inducted into the Belmont University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1992.

“I really appreciate all the other awards I’ve received; I’m very humbled by them. But when someone in your hometown, many I went to school with, was classmates with, to say ‘Bernard, you made a difference’, it brings chills. It almost brings tears to my eyes.”

—Bernard Childress, 2023 CPJI Legacy Luncheon Honoree, Main Street Maury