ELLENBURG — After a decade in the post and 40 years in education, Northern Adirondack Central School Superintendent Laura Marlow will be retiring this summer.
Her last day will be Aug. 5, about a month after her successor is expected to come aboard, on July 1.
Finalists for the job are Jamie LaBarge, now principal at Stafford Middle School in Plattsburgh City School District; and Joe Coakley and James Knight Jr., who both hold positions as principals in the Malone School District.
The Northern Adirondack Central School Board will conduct second-round interviews with the three on Monday, March 18.
"From there, the board will chose the candidates to move on to a public forum on April 2," Marlow said.
FIRST FEMALE SUPERINTENDENT
Marlow began her career as an elementary special education teacher in the Ogdensburg City School District; she also worked at the children’s unit at the Ogdensburg Psychiatric Center.
Eventually, she moved to Plattsburgh, married and worked as a special education teacher and department head in the Peru Central School District,
She also worked nights as a teacher at Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, teaching English to Spanish speaking inmates.
Her true administrative career began as a Middle/High School assistant principal at Peru Central; in August 2006, she took the post of High School principal at AuSable Valley Central School.
In January 2009, Marlow became Northern Adirondack's first female superintendent; at present she is the only woman to hold that administrative position in a Clinton County school.
“I am hoping more women pursue the superintendent role in the future," said Marlow, who said she was saddened because no women applied for superintendent's position she is vacating.
"Women have to take on leadership roles confidently and not feel they need to compete with their male counterparts by coming on too strong and forceful.
"They need to be true to who they are.”
As well, she said, “women have to support women and be their cheerleaders, not their critics.”
GREATEST LEGACY
Marlow was in her first year as superintendent when her husband died of sudden cardiac arrest.
During that sad and difficult time, the NACS family stepped up to support their top administrator, who became a sole breadwinner raising three children.
“I remember when my husband died, the teachers had an honor guard as I stepped out of St. Peter’s Church with my children, and we were so moved by their act of kindness and support,” she said in an email.
Marlow's greatest legacy at NAC is the $29.9 million EXCEL capital improvement project that allowed construction of a new Middle School wing and gymnasium, renovation of classrooms, restoration of the Middle/High School auditorium with state-of-the-art technology, renovation of the entire pool with natural lighting, infrastructure improvements and enhanced security throughout the campus.
“The school is modern, the community is proud, and the staff and students take pride in their schools,” she said.
Marlow also introduced the district's annual dental hygiene program that provides students with free sealants on their teeth, education on dental health and a “dental report card” that they take home with them.
For the past few years, students have enjoyed free breakfast and lunch, as well as free after-school snacks.
“All of these accomplishments never could have been fulfilled without the support of administration, the Board of Education and staff," Marlow said.
EDUCATION ROADBLOCKS
The biggest challenges she sees in education are the lack of qualified teaching candidates and diminishing state aid.
"The North Country is facing a crisis when it comes to finding qualified teachers to fill openings," Marlow said.
That fewer and fewer students are going into the field she attributes to the negative publicity surrounding teachers during the Annual Professional Performance Review movement and when teachers were evaluated based on student test results.
Marlow also believes that college teacher prep programs have been made more difficult, as they now mandate a multitude of tests before a teacher can become certified.
Teachers must also have a master’s degree, she noted.
“Unfortunately, teachers are not revered in the United States as they are in other countries. We need to do more to make teaching a respected and supported profession.”
Marlow also cited as challenging increasing numbers of unfunded mandates in the face of diminishing state aid.
"Unfortunately, school costs keep rising with health care, salaries, etc.," she said, "leaving schools in the position of making tough choices when it comes to course offerings such as electives and extracurricular programming.
“North Country schools owe it to the children to make education a priority and to keep our students competitive with districts that are more affluent,” she added.
VENTURING SOUTH
Asked if, after her retirement, she might fill in as an interim superintendent, as a number of local school administrators have done, Marlow said, "if I do work it will be as a part-time professor at a college to share my knowledge and experiences with up and coming administrators.”
And she would be doing so in sunny Florida.
“I lived in the North Country my entire life, but now it’s time to be a pioneer and venture south," she said. "I will be living in a very active 55+ retirement community about 30 minutes from Walt Disney World, so I will be near the happiest place on earth.”
Marlow's offspring, who all graduated from Plattsburgh High School, are grown and gone.
“My greatest accomplishments and loves of my life are my children,” she said.
Her older son, Joshua, a doctor, is an interventional radiologist resident at Barnes-Jewish Hospital in St. Louis, Mo.
Her middle child, Bryan, is an account executive in San Diego, and her daughter, Ashley, is a registered dental hygienist at High Peaks Dental in Plattsburgh.
“It is with a joyful heart I retire," Marlow said, "and while I never look in the rear-view mirror, I will take with me many wonderful memories."
Email Suzanne Moore:
Twitter: @editorSuzanne
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