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El Campo ISD's Dan Hammock finds perfect harmony in and out of the classroom
By Elizabeth Millard
 Some administrators and teachers have “jobs” outside of their careers — such as volunteering in the community or raising a family. When El Campo ISD Special Education Director Dan Hammock clocks in at his after-hours job, he lets everyone in the room upstage him — literally.
This past year, Hammock and his wife launched an entertainment business called Dan’s Karaoke 2 Go. No stranger to weddings, reunions, anniversaries and birthdays, the Hammocks bring the party to you.
It was at a special education meeting in Little Rock, Ark., that Hammock first encountered karaoke. The hotel lounge featured a small stage and karaoke machine, which piqued the Texas school administrator’s curiosity. Hammock chose “The Lion Sleeps Tonight” as his debut number. He laughs about the challenge the song’s high notes presented. These days, he’s more likely to belt out a David Allen Coe tune. His favorite song, which he sings as often as he can, is “Family Tradition” by Hank Williams Jr.
When one of Hammock’s friends in El Campo started running a karaoke night at a local saloon, Hammock stepped up as a regular crooner. And when his friend decided to call it quits, Hammock stepped up as the emcee. He loved the new gig so much that in November of last year he launched the karaoke-to-go venture. His bookings have been pretty solid ever since.
Yet, this karaoke king hasn’t forgotten his first passion: public education.
Hammock has spent more than three decades working in public education. After graduating from East Texas State University in 1970 with a bachelor’s degree in art, he took a job in Texarkana as a fourth grade teacher, thinking the job would be a nice way to supplement his earnings as a “starving artist.”
“I really enjoyed my students and being in the classroom, and I was like a kid, myself,” he says. “I remember the teachers laughing at me, because I’d be out for recess, hitting balls and throwing passes, just like the students.”
Hammock says his desire to be an artist soon was supplanted by his passion for education. He moved up to an administrative position, serving as an elementary school principal for 18 years. Hammock then earned a master’s degree in special education. In 1990, he became a special education director. He served in that role for more than a decade before announcing his retirement — a decision that was short-lived.
When Hammock moved to the Gulf Coast in pursuit of a life of hunting and fishing, he caught wind of an opening for a special education director in El Campo ISD. Soon after, he was back on campus.
“I’d worked in one school district for my whole career, and I wanted to explore, so I thought it would be a good time to try something new,” he says. “The challenge of special education drew me back.”
According to Hammock, school administrators today are serving in a period in history when significant corrections are being made to special education, and he enjoys being part of this change. He says thanks to former President Bush and No Child Left Behind, there is more inclusion for special education students and greater response-to-intervention efforts. With such change in place and more on the horizon, these students have an opportunity to learn alongside their peers instead of being isolated. In addition to his duties in El Campo ISD, Hammock also serves on the executive board of the Texas Council of Administrators of Special Education.
Emceeing karaoke parties might seem a world away from Hammock’s noble work in special education, but the school administrator draws some parallels.
“You get to see courage, and help others to appreciate the enjoyment of life,” he says. “When you’re up there, sharing with the crowd, it can feel similar to getting excited about being in front of a classroom. But mainly, it’s just a whole lot of fun.”
ELIZABETH MILLARD is a Minneapolis, Minn.-based writer who frequently contributes to District Administration magazine, which reaches 75,000 school administrators nationwide.
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