Five associate superintendents in Cumberland County Schools announce retirements
Five associate superintendents in Cumberland County Schools announced Tuesday that they are retiring.
At the Cumberland County Board of Education meeting, school officials honored Mary Black, associate superintendent of student support services; Joe Desormeaux, associate superintendent of auxiliary service; Clyde Locklear, associate superintendent of business operations; Betty Musselwhite, associate superintendent of school support; and Ron Phipps, associate superintendent of data and accountability.
The five are among nine members of Superintendent Marvin Connelly Jr.’s cabinet. They have a total of 163 years of experience in education, according to Lindsay Whitley, a spokesperson for the school system.
Before becoming an associate superintendent, Black was honored as district and regional Teacher of the Year and district and regional Principal of the Year. She said she has enjoyed every minute of her service, which she considered a ministry rather than a job.
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“It has truly been a labor of love,” she said.
Desormeaux, who is a retired Air Force officer, has almost 40 years of experience in maintenance, construction and planning. He said he thought his time in the military was magnificent.
“The career in education has been a whole lot more rewarding,” he said.
Locklear has more than 30 years of experience in finance for school systems. He said he is from a family of educators, with each of his parents serving as a teacher for more than 30 years. He said he appreciated his time in the county.
“Cumberland has given me an opportunity to grow personally and in my skill set,” he said.
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Musselwhite and Phipps both served their entire careers in Cumberland County Schools.
Musselwhite was a teacher, an assistant principal and a principal, before taking the associate superintendent’s role in 2009.
“It certainly has been my greatest honor to serve the schools, the boys and girls, the teachers, (and) the principals of Cumberland County,” she said.
Phipps served as a teacher, a coach, an assistant principal and principal before becoming an associate superintendent. He said it has been wonderful working in the school district.
Phipps praised the leadership style of Superintendent Marvin Connelly Jr.
“We’re just old, and it’s time for us to retire,” he said. “I don’t want anyone to think there’s anything negative going on.”
Connelly said the associate superintendents will enjoy a well deserved retirement. Some were eligible to retire four years ago, he said.
“When the pandemic threw CCS into unknown territory they chose to stay aboard and see our district through one of the most challenging times in public education,” he said. “For that we remain forever grateful.”
Local news editor Steve DeVane can be reached at sdevane@fayobserver.com.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Five associate superintendents in Cumberland County Schools retiring
