PEARCY -- Superintendent Steve Anderson announced during the regular meeting of the Lake Hamilton School Board on Monday that he intends to retire at the end of the current school year.
Anderson, who has served for 13 years as the district's chief administrator, said Tuesday that he made the school board aware in December during his annual review of his intentions to retire. The board, he said, allowed him to decide when to make his announcement.
"I sent each (board member) a personal message letting them know my plan and yesterday, I held a short administrative staff meeting to let our administrators know," Anderson said. "Mr. (Brian) Bridges then encouraged me to send a message out to staff following the meeting.
"A lot of people knew given the number of years that I was probably getting close to retirement."
In his letter presented to the board Monday, Anderson said he is "very proud of the accomplishments we have been able to make" during his time at the helm of the district.
"In keeping with the words of a previous Lake Hamilton superintendent, I promise to 'hoe to the end of the row,'" he said in his letter. "I will work to make this a great school year, but I also wanted to make this official as early as possible. This should give ample time to begin the process of selecting my successor."
Anderson said Tuesday there is still "a lot of school year left" and he plans to continue serving until June 1, 2019.
In his letter, he offered his assistance to the board in the process of choosing a new superintendent.
"Once that decision is made by the board, I will work to make the transition as smooth as possible for the new superintendent," he said in the letter.
During his tenure with the district, Anderson has been vocal about school safety, often visiting with districts across the country to share Lake Hamilton's extensive security plan.
In August, the district hosted a roundtable discussion with cabinet members, including U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, to discuss the district's plan, which has been in place for 25 years. Anderson has said he stresses to the other districts that Lake Hamilton's plan is not one size fits all.
Over the course of 38 years, Anderson said he has worked with three school districts, two in Garland County. He began his career with the Lonoke School District where he stayed for four years before being hired at Lake Hamilton as an assistant football coach. For five years, he said he worked as an administrator at Lakeside School District before returning to Lake Hamilton.
Between both stints, Anderson has spent 29 years at Lake Hamilton.
"Having the opportunity to work in Arkansas public schools for 38 years has been a blessing from the Lord," he said.
Anderson said he and his wife have recently built a new home that will be their retirement home, but he said he will still be active in different capacities within the community.
"I won't go to the rocking chair and watch time go by," he said. "I will still be in the community and have some other things I'm interested in pursuing."
Anderson credits his success to the support of his wife and son over the years "because when you're superintendent, a lot of times it's not just you. It's the whole family sometimes."
"I still remember being a 23-year-old kid starting my first year at Lonoke thinking retirement would never happen, but it tends to creep up on you," he said.
Local on 10/17/2018