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Young retiring at Roscoe after 33 years |
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Written by Kimberly Gray
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Monday, 28 April 2008 |
The Roscoe ISD board of trustees accepted the resignation of high school principal Frank Young this past week during its regular board meeting. Young said he is retiring after 33 years in education.
Young began his career at his alma mater, Sweetwater High School, as an elementary physical education teacher. How-ever, after only one semester he was offered a coaching and teaching job at Roscoe ISD.
At Roscoe he started out as a fourth grade teacher and junior high girls coach. He said he moved along with his fourth grade class up through the seventh grade and later became a high school girls coach and also helped coach football. For seven years he served as the district’s head football coach and athletic director. Then he became principal, a position he held for about five years.
At one time he was the only principal for the school district, but last year the school hired an assistant principal, and Young concentrated on serving as the high school principal.
Education is not a career Young considered on his own as a young man. He had plans to become a forest ranger, but our nation got involved in the Vietnam War at that time. That meant Young was eligible for the draft.
He then put his plans on hold and moved with his wife closer to home again in case he was drafted so she would be close to family.
He remembered his number was 54 in the draft lottery. He said he was the very next person to go to Vietnam from Nolan County, but was told that if he wasn’t drafted by April 1, then he would be reassigned. Fortunately, he was not drafted.
Since he had moved back closer to home, he chose to go to school at Angelo State University.
When he walked in to sign up for classes, not knowing what he would sign up for, a professor came up to him and told him he looked like a football player and she set him up for a course of study that would allow him to earn his teaching degree and become a coach.
He later earned his masters degree from Abilene Christian University.
“It was by the grace of God that I got into education,” Young said. He called the professor that cornered him that day an angel who led him down the path he was meant to follow.
The fact that it fell into place like it did without any effort on his part affirmed to Young that education was his calling.
“I have loved my time here,” he said of teaching and coaching in Roscoe.
“I will miss the kids the most. They have kept me young at heart.”
Young said he has no specific plans for retirement and that he would play it by ear unless he gets bored. His wife will continue to teach first grade at Roscoe.
Two teachers also submitted resignations during Monday’s board meeting. Both teachers — Sherie Williamson from Abilene and Micah Henson from Merkel — have commuted from other towns. Williamson teaches Spanish, and Henson teaches high school math.
“They have all done an excellent job for the district, and I wish them well in other opportunities and in retirement,” superintendent Kim Alexander said.
The board also approved a motion to move forward with fencing the football stadium and playground area. It will be chain link fence.
Alexander said there would also be gates placed in the fence to require visitors to come in at only a few different entries. “This will allow us to be a completely secure campus,” Alex-ander said.
The board also approved hosting the annual teachers luncheon on May 30 at noon. This is where the school board and administration show their appreciation to the teachers and staff for the school year. Aramark will also help with the luncheon.
Alexander reported to the board on a variety of topics, including updates on summer repairs and the work the administration is doing on the tentative degree plan to complete high school with an associate of arts degree.
In addition, Alexander said the state legislature is planning to revisit legislation that allows school districts to enter into agreements with companys like Airtricity in order to save on tax revenues. The school district will receive 60 percent of Air-tricity’s tax revenue savings as payment, based on the agreement.
The school district also met the expenditure target set by the state where school districts have to spend at least 65 percent of their funds on instruction related expenditures. “We are happy to saw we met that target,” Alexander said.
There were three different presentations given during the board meeting as well. Brian Dowell showed the board how a device placed between the electric meter and circuit box will save the district on energy costs. Alexander said that a new state mandate requires districts to cut energy costs by at least 10 percent per year for the next five years.
Roscoe ISD counselor Mar-sha Alexander, presented a report on fifth and sixth grade reading and math TAKS scores and how they compare to districts in the region and across the state.
Assistant principal Edward Morales gave a presentation about the benefits of the Renaissance Learning package in regards to reading skills for students in kindergarten through eighth grade. This is a software program designed to improve reading skills and therefore overall academics.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 28 April 2008 )
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