Funeral set for Larry Mixon, former Columbus schools superintendent and wildlife advocate
Funeral services will be held Thursday for Larry Mixon Sr., Ph.D., a former Columbus City Schools superintendent and avid naturalist who died March 7 at Riverside Hospital. He was 74.
Mixon, a lifetime Columbus-area resident, had a five-year tenure (1992-97) as the Columbus district's superintendent, and served 20 years on the Ohio Department of Natural Resource's Ohio Wildlife Council until his death.
Visitation will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday at Mount Hermon Missionary Baptist Church, 2283 Sunbury Rd., followed immediately by a funeral service there at 11 a.m.
Angela Chapman, interim superintendent of Columbus City Schools while the district searches for a permanent leader, said Monday that Mixon will be remembered as a coach, principal, and superintendent by residents of the district.
Of Mixon's legacy, Champan said, "I stand in the place of ultimate humility for the work of leading a large, urban district, particularly in our community."
Early life
Born in 1948, Lawrence Mixon grew up in a crowded, three-room flat with seven brothers and sisters and no running water. Mixon's earliest home was in the "American Addition," a poor, segregated, working-class community at 5th and Joyce avenues, northeast of Downtown on the Near East Side.
About the time the Mixons moved into a larger home near Sunbury and Nelson roads, Larry started a paper route and bought a bow and arrow with some of his earnings, he told The Dispatch in 1997. He became an avid hunter, spending summer evenings along Alum Creek, south of Broad Street, where there was an abundance of squirrels.
On a good night, Mixon said, he shot more than a dozen squirrels. He sold them to neighbors for 50 cents. He also sold rabbits for $1 and pheasants for $2.
The hunting, however, ended abruptly.
An arrow landed on the front lawn of the Governor's Mansion. While retrieving it, Mixon said a Bexley policeman drew his gun on Mixon, confiscated his bow, charged him with trespassing and took him to jail.
In court a week later, Mixon's father was fined $75 - a huge sum for the family.
In 1967, Mixon graduated from Eastmoor High School, the first member of his family to graduate high school. He then attended Central State University, an historically Black university in Wilberforce, from 1967-71, where he played football three years and received grants and scholarships.
After graduation there, he won a scholarship to Ohio State University, where he received a master's degree and doctorate in physical education. While he was in graduate school, he also enlisted in the U.S. Army and was a veteran after more than two years of service.
A rising leader in Columbus City Schools
Mixon began his career with Columbus City Schools in 1975 as a coach and counselor at his alma mater, Eastmoor High School.
He later held several other positions within the district, including administrative assistant principal at Whetstone and Independence high schools, assistant superintendent of student services, and interim superintendent before becoming superintendent in 1992.
Mixon was a defendant in a later-dropped civil lawsuit filed in 1993 by the Columbus Education Association, which alleged that Mixon had not received the correct certification to become a superintendent. The teachers union said the Columbus Board of Education had hired Mixon illegally without a certificate and that the then-state education superintendent erred in issuing Mixon a four-year provisional certificate "with deficiencies."
Four months later, the union dropped the lawsuit after the state superintendent agreed not to issue any more certificates with deficiencies and Mixon began taking certification classes.
Near the end of his term as superintendent, Mixon urged the board to go through a more thorough process before permanently shuttering seven schools after the board postponed a cost-cutting vote that would have closed Centennial and Eastmoor high schools, Indianola Middle School and Salem, Siebert, Stockbridge and Winterset elementaries.
In December 1996, Mixon announced he would not be seeking a renewal after his contract was set to expire on July 31, 1997 — effectively resigning — citing the stresses of the job taking a toll on his health and desire to spend more time with his family.
"The job borders on being life-threatening because there is so much stress associated with it," he told The Dispatch in 1997.
After his superintendent's contract expired, the district hired him in 1997 as executive director of transportation services. He later retired from the district.
Returning to nature
Mixon remained an avid outdoorsman and marksman throughout his life, enjoying rabbit and wild turkey hunting, as well bowhunting white-tailed deer, according to his ODNR profile. He also enjoyed fishing for bass, walleye and king salmon.
In his retirement, Mixon was appointed and reappointed as a member of the eight-person Ohio Wildlife Council, serving for 20 years until his death. The council approves all ODNR Division of Wildlife proposed rules and regulations.
"The spirit of nature and wildlife conservation has always been an important part of my life," Mixon wrote in his ODNR profile. "I am committed to conserving these priceless resources for future generations to enjoy.”
Mixon is survived by his wife of 52 years, Joan; his sons, Larry Jr. (Latoscha) and Mike (Charisse); sisters, Rosalyn Mixon and Maxine Cochran; brothers, Wayne (Valena) and Gary; 14 grandchildren, and numerous ,52 years, Joan Mixon, sons; Larry Jr. (Latoscha) Mixon and Mike (Charisse) Mixon; 14 grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews, according to his obituary. Affinity Memorial Chapel is handling arrangements.
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Funeral set for Larry Mixon, former Columbus schools superintendent
