DIXFIELD — Western Foothills School
District Superintendent Dr. Thomas Ward will be honored next week by
his peers with an outstanding leadership award from the Maine School
Superintendents Association.

Five such awards will be presented
statewide.

Sandra MacArthur, spokeswoman for the
organization, said Ward was nominated by the Western Maine Regional
Group of the Maine School Superintendents Association.

Recipients of the award, which has been
presented since 1984, must demonstrate outstanding educational
leadership through the development of exemplary educational programs,
service to the educational profession and service to the
superintendents association.

Ward has been the superintendent of SAD
21 in Dixfield for the past six years, and was critical to the
formation of the Foothills School District, also known as Regional
School Unit 10, comprising SAD 21, SAD 43 in Rumford, SAD 39 in
Buckfield, and the unaffiliated town of Hanover.

MacArthur said the Executive Committee
of the superintendents association receives nominations, rates each
nomination, then determines the number of awards that will be
presented that year.

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The new Western Foothills School
District becomes official on July 1, although its board has been
meeting for the past six months. It was formed under the mandate of
state law that called for smaller districts to join together in an
effort to provide improved education and to save money. Twelve towns
make up the new school district.

The award will be presented at the
annual Commissioner’s Conference in Bar Harbor.

David Connerty-Marin, Director of
Communications for the Maine Department of Eduation, said via email,
that Commissioner Susan Gendron will also present a Commissioner’s
Award at the same time. The identity of that honoree has not been
revealed.

Ward announced the upcoming award at
the final gathering of SAD 21 staff for the school year last week.

“I couldn’t have done that without
such wonderful people,” he said.

eadams@sunjournal.com


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