Dr. Tripp earned a B. A. with distinction in history at Virginia Tech in 1972. He completed his M. S. in Educational Administration and Supervision at Radford University in 1977. He received his Certificate of Advanced Graduate Studies from Virginia Tech in 1993 and his Doctor of Education degree from Tech in 1995.

Prior to becoming superintendent, Dr. Tripp served as Director of Instruction in Salem, Interim Principal of West Salem Elementary School, Principal of Covington High School, Principal of Lancaster High School, Assistant Principal of New Castle High School, Federal Programs Director for Craig County Public Schools, and as a Teacher of English and History. He also coached football, basketball, and baseball.

Dr. Tripp is a member of Phi Delta Kappa, the American Association of School Administrators, the Virginia Association of School Superintendents, the Century Club, the Horace Mann League, the Rotary Club of Salem and First United Methodist Church in Salem and is a Life Member of the Virginia Parent Teachers Association. He served as Vice-chairman of the Western Virginia Public Education Consortium for three years and is presently a member of the consortium's Executive Committee.

Currently Dr. Tripp serves as an adjunct instructor for Radford University, is a member of the Accountability Advisory Committee of the Virginia Board of Education, and also serves on the Virginia Economic Bridge Board. Dr. Tripp recently completed a biographical entry for Dr. Percy Casino Corbin, an African American Pulaski County physician, who has been accepted for inclusion in the Dictionary of Virginia Biography , a publication of the Library of Virginia.

In March, the fifteen member superintendents of Region VI named him Superintendent of the Year for the region. In May, Dr. Tripp was selected as Virginia Superintendent of the Year by the Virginia Association of School Superintendents (VASS). This September his name was advanced to the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) National Superintendent of the Year competition.

He resides in Salem with his wife, Joan, who teaches second grade at Fort Lewis Elementary School in Roanoke County. They have two sons, Benjamin, a master's degree candidate in Urban Studies and Planning at Virginia Tech; and Matthew, a ninth grader at Salem High School.