Shaw caps off 46-year career in SAD 42
MARS HILL, Maine — As Roger Shaw prepares to wrap up a 46-year career in SAD 42 next Wednesday — the last 20 of them as superintendent — he said he will miss the faculty, staff and students the most.
“It’s the relationships and the interactions with the people in this district that I’m going to miss,” he said. “In particular, Kathy Miller, my administrative assistant, has been invaluable to me. I think she’s made the boss look a whole lot better than he’s been many times.”
According to Shaw, being a superintendent of a small school district is a very exciting job “because you do a little bit of everything.”
“It’s almost like being a farmer — you’ve got to be a little bit of a mechanic, a little bit of an herbalist, a bit of a salesman, a psychologist and a meteorologist. It’s the same way in a small school … you manage the grounds and the buildings, you manage the transportation and buses; you do it all from soup to nuts,” he said. “You don’t have the opportunity to employ a curriculum coordinator or a transportation director or a building and grounds/maintenance supervisor … you’re all one, and that’s fit me well over the years.”
Shaw and the SAD 42 board of directors had been discussing his eventual retirement for some time.
“The board and I have conversed for the last year-and-a-half or so about what a transition would look like, how we could make it as seamless as possible, and keep the quality of our district maintained,” he said. “I’ve felt for a while that the district is in good shape, it’s in good standing, we’ve done a lot of very good things educationally and academically. We’ve got excellent people in place; we’ve got a great administrative team and a tremendous staff, and have made multiple transitions over the past four or five years in the area of personnel.
“We’ve upped the ante in the quality and level of our technology in this district to the point that we’re really one of the leaders, I think, in the state as far as technology and using technology in instruction is concerned,” said Shaw, 68. “With a combination of all of those things, you get to a point where you feel good and that the time is right to make that transfer so that new leadership can come in and be on good, solid footing when they start. I heard someone say once that, ‘It’s always better to consider retirement before your boss considers it for you,’ so the time just seemed right.”
A native of Mars Hill, Shaw started his career in SAD 42 back in 1968 when he taught social studies and physical education at the Bridgewater Grammar School, which was a grade 5-8 school.
“I also coached some sports there,” he said. “We had a young staff, and were sort of all learning together. I think more than anything that sort of established my philosophy of education … a holistic approach to education; it wasn’t just about the subjects, but it was more about relationships with kids and getting kids engaged in different activities, both inside and outside of the classroom.”
After four years at Bridgewater, Shaw taught civics and U.S. history at Central Aroostook High School from 1972-86. He then served as the high school principal from 1986-94.
“In addition to spending 46 years working in SAD 42, I also went to school here,” said Shaw. “I graduated from Aroostook Central Institute, which was the predecessor of CAHS. With the exception of my four years in college and a stint in the Army, plus my first five years as a child, my entire life has been spent in SAD 42 either as a student or as an employee.”
As he looks ahead to retirement, Shaw said he and his wife, Heidi, will likely spend some time volunteering with different organizations.
“I also love to fish. I got a fly rod from the school board as a retirement gift, and I look forward to using it,” he said. “I love to hunt, and I garden. My garden might get a little bigger. I give most of it away now, so I’ll probably have a little more to give away.”
As a lasting tribute to Shaw, the board of directors announced at his Dec. 12 retirement party that the Central Aroostook Junior-Senior High School gymnasium would be dedicated in Shaw’s honor.
“My memories of SAD 42 are deep in my heart and I love all of you guys,” Shaw told guests. “I love this district and I am a Panther through and through and I always will be.”
Shaw will continue to serve as the Easton superintendent on a part-time basis.
