‘Uncle Gary’ is retiring

After five years as superintendent in a school district where he has worked for more than two decades, Gary Schall will officially retire next June 30. The formal announcement will be made at Monday’s Lawrence Board of Education meeting. Deputy Superintendent Dr. Ann Pedersen is expected to replace him.

Starting with a year as deputy superintendent, when he learned the job under John Fitzsimons, Schall, 61, presided over a school district that tightened its fiscal belt before the state tax cap was implemented; played an instrumental role in bridging the gap between the public and private school communities; dealt with the impact of Hurricane Sandy, which included closing the high school and shifting students to other schools; and oversaw the sale of the Number Six School to the Hebrew Academy of Long Beach and the leasing of the Number Five School to the Shulamith School.

Under Schall, Lawrence implemented its version of the Princeton Plan, which organized the three elementary schools by grade level instead of geography, including the Lawrence Elementary School, which is now housed in the middle school building.

Reflecting on Sandy four years later, Schall said he believes the calamity brought the school community closer. Seventeen days after the storm, Lawrence schools reopened. Two months later, the high school was closed because storm flooding had damaged electrical wiring, and students were moved to the middle school, while half of the middle school students were moved to two elementary schools.

“It was a defining moment for the school district and for the community,” Schall said of the storm and its aftermath. “The silver lining was that I would go to my office in the middle school and I had the high school kids in my building. I told them they were in my house, and they could call me Uncle Gary.”

A $5 million construction project last year moved the administration offices to the high school and created enhanced classroom and office space in the high school and middle school.

Schall said he stands by his decisions to initially use the high school and then to close it for almost three months. “These are the moments I will cherish,” he said. “I told the high school students first about the school closing. The kids still had a good year. We went to Disney; nothing was at a loss.”

Fostering improved relationships between the yeshivas in the Five Towns and the public school community was a huge step forward after Sandy, according to HALB Executive Director Richard Hagler, when the school’s Long Beach building was severely damaged by storm flooding.

“Gary Schall went above and beyond when HALB was devastated by Hurricane Sandy,” said Hagler, who also credited Pedersen with helping to ensure that HALB students could continue their studies. [They] stepped up to the forefront to make room for us, and have all the available facilities at our disposal. We met in the middle school with flashlights. We are ever indebted to Gary for his warmth, kindness, understanding and compassion.”

Also four years ago, Lawrence Middle School eighth-graders began collaborating with their peers at the Hebrew Academy of the Five Towns and Rockaway on the Names Not Numbers program, introduced to HAFTR by Tova Fish-Rosenberg. The students learn about the Holocaust, then videotape interviews with survivors.

“One of Gary Schall’s special talents is his ability to bring people together,” said HAFTR Middle School Principal Joshua Gold. “The HAFTR-Lawrence collaboration is the only one that partners a public school with a private school. The unique dynamic of this program reflects the unique skill set of Gary Schall.”

Lawrence school board President Murray Forman said that bridging the gap between the public and private school communities was a result of the accessibility, energy and transparency Schall brought to the job, and how he made everyone comfortable. “I reflect back on his tenure and see he was a strong leader who was instrumental in unifying various constituencies in the district, and helped Lawrence on its upward trajectory in its mission to serve our children,” Forman said.

Not everything has gone smoothly, however. The district has made severe cuts in staffing to reduce costs and regain its financial footing over the past few years, and the Lawrence Teachers Association remains without a contract six years after the last negotiated agreement expired.

Schall said that hammering out a new contract is a matter of timing and getting LTA representatives and board trustees to the table. Both sides have hampered the process by filing grievances against each other. But he remains steadfast in his support of the teachers. “The teachers in the Lawrence School District produce at an incredible level, are dedicated and have performed above and beyond the business of education,” he said.

Pedersen, who has doubled as the district’s assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction and principal of the Lawrence Early Childhood Center at the Number Four School, said she looks forward to her new position.

“Lawrence has been my professional home for the last 24 years,” she said. “I am so very proud of the educational opportunities and successes in the district and passionate about continuing to enrich the lives of all learners in the district. It’s an honor and privilege to become the next superintendent. The best days are yet to be.”

Schall, who has a musical background and was the district’s music coordinator before becoming a superintendent, will remain involved in the arts and arts education. He has worked closely with Pedersen these past six years, and offered her some advice. “No matter how difficult it gets to be, stay true to the district’s mission and what benefits the kids.”