CARIBOU, Maine — A unanimous vote by the RSU 39 school board welcomed their new superintendent of schools, Tim Doak, at last Wednesday’s board meeting.
“I proudly move that we hire Mr. Tim Doak as the next superintendent of RSU 39,” school board member Ron Willey proposed.
Doak, originally from Fort Fairfield, got his start in the education world in Limestone and made his way to the top by taking on teaching responsibilities in Madawaska and Fort Kent where he’s had experience as principal of Fort Kent Community High School and then as superintendent of SAD 27, which has been his home for the past 12 years.
“I feel excellent and wonderful,” Doak said. “I think it’s a professional step forward in my career. It’s a larger school district, and it’s a system that believes wholeheartedly in proficiency based education, that’s the system I came from and we were big on that.”
Doak knows the ins and outs of the Caribou region school system already through his work with Northern Maine Education Collaborative (NMEC), and said he’s looking forward to getting back to his roots in Limestone and being able to work with the other schools in central Aroostook County will be fun.
Doak admits he comes to the position with no major initiatives or changes planned as he believes former superintendent Susan White, who stepped down this summer to take up her previous position as principal of Limestone Community School, left the RSU in great shape, “It’s not going to come in and need a lot of work, just getting to meet the people,” Doak said.
He’s focused on getting business and schools to work together “because I think it’s the future, the kids in our classrooms are the future workforce of Maine. Schools must work together,” he said.
And he can’t wait to take the reins on the RSU’s capital improvement project and be part of building a new school for tomorrow’s workforce.
“I’ve had the opportunity to work closely with Tim in other settings through [NMEC],” Lois Brewer, RSU 39 assistant superintendent, said. “I’ve known him to be a very innovative thinker, extremely enthusiastic about education and students, teaching and learning, and a great supporter of proficiency based education. I think he’s a wonderful fit for RSU 39 and for our future.”
