Many have probably wondered why I have been quiet on the news of the announced retirement of our Superintendent Dr. Randy Poe.
Dr. Poe
If you follow me on social media, I am probably one of the first to spread the word about big news. Being on the school board, I needed a few days to let the official news sink in and allow some time for reflection.
One of the reason I ran for school board in 2019 happened Thursday night when Dr. Poe announced his retirement.
I knew the day would be coming sooner rather than later in that our school board would have to embark upon the search for our new leader. I felt very strongly in the need to be a part of this extremely important process. This is a huge decision that none of our board members take lightly.
We are very aware of the impact of choosing a new leader for our students, teachers, staff, families and community will have upon our county. The Superintendent of our schools not only impacts education but the growth and vitality of Boone County and the Northern Kentucky region.
Our schools and education system is the heartbeat of our community.
I personally want to take this time to thank Dr. Poe for all he has done for students and families in Boone County. I don’t think many really understand how much of a visionary that Dr. Poe is.
I am a parent, I am thoroughly immersed in the education realm on social media, Voxer groups, reading articles and at professional development events. I have learned by being in these realms, just how transformational our district is ahead of others and the pride I have in being a part of it.
Many state our educational system needs to be adaptive and change, but very few districts actually make that happen.
There are so many areas that Dr. Poe has moved our district forward to become one of the most innovative and forward thinking districts in the country.
By being part of a much larger global education community, I have had the opportunity to see where education is and should be going.
While yes, everyone can see the physical innovations like Ballyshannon Middle School and the Ignite Institute.
But if you dig down underneath, you will see the real vision and initiatives put into place that benefits so many students at multiple levels and in different ways inside our schools.
Let’s see where do I even start.
Pile identifies some of the initiatives introduced during Dr. Poe’s tenure in Boone County (click to enlarge).
I started jotting ideas down on a notepad (see insert) and it kept growing and I know I am going to miss some. I encourage you if you get the opportunity, ask Dr. Poe about any of the items, you will be amazed with the wealth of knowledge and perspectives he will share with you.
These are just a few of the examples of how we are innovating education in Boone County, there are many more.
Something our district is embracing is Social Emotional Learning (SEL).
That is if a child is not socially tuned into school, there are distractions or not the best home environment, school is a safe place for them. If a child is not mentally with us, he will not learn.
We have a number of SEL initiatives going on in our district – Leader in Me and Orange Frog just to name a few.
It is so easy for a Superintendent and school board to focus on the numbers that I am extremely proud that we make it a priority to help the “whole child.”
Partially the reason I am on the school board is due to Dr. Poe and his support of parent engagement. Time and time again he has supported initiatives of parents as a whole in being a partner in education and me personally.
If you have attended the school board meetings since I have been on the board, you will hear me say time and time again, it goes back to building relationships. Dr. Poe was willing to support and build a relationship with a parent who wanted to be involved.
Anytime I have asked him to be involved, he has been there. From speaking at the KY PTA State Conference to attending many CIPL program sessions to leading sessions on Growth Mindset at ParentCamp, he has never once turned my request down.
Pile, center holding award, and Poe, to her right, in Lexington when Pile receive the Beverly Raimundo Parent Leadership award in 2017.
When I received the Beverly Raimondo Parent Leadership Award in 2017, (for) which he and Helen Carroll submitted my recommendation, he made the trek to Lexington to present me with the award even though he was dealing with health issues.
He made another journey a few weeks later to Frankfort when I received citations from both the House and Senate Chambers. I just kept thinking, this is the Superintendent of the 3rd largest school district in Kentucky with over 21,000 students and he makes that kind of effort for a parent? Wow.
I want to thank Randy for all the time he has spent with me, helping to learn and understand where our school district has been, our vision and role of a school board member. It is only if we understand our history, that we can move forward with confidence.
I also want to thank him for his patience with me as a new school board member and my endless lists of questions. It is almost guaranteed, that each time a packet for a meeting is posted, I will have questions.
It is my nature to understand an item as much as possible, sometimes it may take questions from different angles for the light bulb to go off. I appreciate his patience waiting for that to happen.
I also want to thank him in pushing our board to be constant learners. I have not read so many books in a long time, but I am thoroughly enjoying learning about 4DX, leadership and of course, Shawn Achor and the Happiness Advantage and Big Potential.
Boone County School Board members flank Poe at the meeting earlier this month when he announced his retirement.
I remember shortly after winning the election, I was at an event in which someone asked me “are you ready to get on and change that board”. My response was “I am ready to be on the board.”
In hindsight, that answer was never truer to the team which the Boone County School Board is, but an integral part of that team is our Superintendent, Dr. Randy Poe.
I feel very blessed to have been able to serve on the Board with him as our Superintendent even if it only for a short amount of time.
Thank you, your guidance, vision and leadership will be truly missed. But I do know, we will continue working together for the benefit of our kids in Boone County and Northern Kentucky, just in different capacities.
So now our board begins a new journey, the search for our new leader.
As I mentioned above, we do not take this lightly. We know the heavy burden we have before us, not only for our students, families but our community and region.
Please say a prayer for guidance as we start and move along this journey.
Julia D. Pile is a Boone County School Board Member
