Longtime superintendent with 36 years in Nazareth Area School District announces retirement

FROM THE EXPRESS TIMES

Nazareth Area School District Superintendent Victor Lesky announced today he plans to retire from the district he has overseen for more than a decade.

At tonight's school board meeting, Lesky said he plans to leave July 4, 2012.

The school board next month will begin searching for a replacement and internal candidates will be considered first, according to the board.

School board member Linda McDonald said the personnel committee and the school board will conduct the search. She expected the new candidate to be named by the end of December.

"We will begin identifying the needs of the district and take those needs into consideration as we search for a new superintendent," McDonald said. "It is our intention to identify a qualified candidate in a timely manner to insure there is no disruption in school district processes and student services."

Lesky, 58, with his family in the audience, told the public he decided to announce his retirement plans early to ensure an effective transition in leadership for the start of the 2012-13 school year.

He has been an educator for the past 38 years with 36 years in Nazareth and the other two years teaching technical education in the Easton Area School District.

Lesky said he plans to work in an area outside of public education where his skills will help others and wants to spend more time with his family, including a new grandson. His most recent salary was $149,708.

"During the past 36 years, I have had the honor and good fortune to serve the students, parents and residents of the Nazareth Area School District as a teacher, assistant principal, high school principal and superintendent of schools," Lesky told the public.

After listing several of the accomplishments the district attained during his tenure as superintendent, Lesky said, “I will always be proud to say I was a ‘Blue Eagle.’”

School board members then corrected Lesky and told him he always will be a "Blue Eagle" in present tense.

"We're not happy, but we understand," McDonald said.

Lesky became superintendent in July 2001 following the departure of Thomas J. Meloy. Lesky had served as acting superintendent since July 1999, when Meloy took a one-year sabbatical to study instructional technology through Penn State University's distance-learning program. Meloy later returned to the district as director of instructional resource development.

In looking back on his past accomplishments as superintendent, Lesky said he helped to do the following:

* Successfully transformed Nazareth from a small, rural school district to one with a student population ranked in the top 20 percent of all Pennsylvania school districts.

* Improved a quality academic program highlighted by 85 to 90 percent of all graduates entering baccalaureate degree or post-secondary education programs.

* Established a diversity program for district students, teachers and community members.

* Maintained fiscal integrity that saw the Nazareth Area School District move from the highest real estate taxing entity in 1999 to the current ranking of fifth out of eight Northampton County school districts.

* Oversaw the transition of the school district from a K-5, 6-8, 9-12 configuration, to its current grade level structure by involving parents, teachers and the community in a collaborative process.

* Led the construction of the silver LEED-certified Nazareth Area Middle School along with major renovations at Nazareth Area High School, Andrew S. Leh Stadium, and the construction of the Facilities and Operations building.

* Helped to make all six district schools meet Adequate Yearly Progress benchmarks in the school years 2009-10 and 2010-11.

* Continued and improved communication among internal and external stakeholders through the establishment of a liaison committee, Nazareth Area School District Advisory Council and numerous memberships in the community.

Lesky praised the leadership of many, saying nothing could be accomplished without a community led by a school board that placed a high value on the education of its youth, parents who worked with the school district to provide the needed support from home, a community that financially supported education as "the path to a better future" and students who possessed a strong work ethic and were willing to sacrifice immediate gratification for long term success.

Lesky serves as a board member of the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce, Moravian Hall Square Retirement Community, Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators (IU 20 representative), and the Pennsylvania Local Government Investment Trust.

He is a member of the Lehigh University School Study Council, served as the CIT superintendent of record in 2007 and 2008, and is an adjunct professor in the graduate education program of Moravian College. Lesky was a member of the PIAA Wrestling Officials Lehigh Valley Chapter from 1982-2008.

Lesky graduated from Penn State University and received his master’s degree in educational administration, principal’s certification and superintendent’s letter of eligibility from Lehigh University. He earned his doctorate in education Leadership from Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Lesky taught technical education in the Easton Area School District and at Nazareth Area High School before becoming junior high school assistant principal in 1979. He became high school principal in 1984 and superintendent of schools in 1999.

http://www.lehighvalleylive.com/nazareth/index.ssf/2011/09/longtime_superintendent_with_3.html