By Jeanne Sager
FALLSBURG — March 11, 2003 – Another county school superintendent has announced his retirement.
Fallsburg Central School head Gary Holbert, 54, will be leaving the district in August, the culmination of his seventh year in the district.
His retirement follows in the footsteps of superintendents in Eldred, Livingston Manor and Tri-Valley who recently announced retirements, and the exit of the head of the Liberty district last year.
Holbert came to the county from Johnson City, his hometown, where he was serving as an assistant superintendent.
“When I came here, I was looking to stay about this amount of time,” he recalled. “I was looking for a superintendency, and with the location and my kids, it just seemed right.”
(By that time, Holbert’s children had already graduated from high school, so a move to Fallsburg would not disrupt their academic careers).
Since he came on board at the Sullivan County school, Holbert has seen a number of changes in the district – the introduction of new GED assistance for students, inclusion of special education students into the regular classroom, the addition of more college and AP courses and development to help teachers provide the very best to the students.
And Holbert said he will miss his position in Fallsburg.
“I think the kids are one [of the things I’ll miss],” he said. “And we do a lot of professional development, which I enjoy, and I’ll miss that.”
The district has already begun its search for Holbert’s replacement, and he will not be leaving until the end of August.
Holbert hasn’t exactly decided what’s next. His wife is a principal in a Rockland County school district, which will likely play a role in determining whether he will move.