Sloan receives state honor

The Louisiana Association of School Executives has named St. Tammany School Superintendent Gayle Sloan Louisiana’s 2009 Superintendent of the Year. Sloan said she is honored to represent superintendents from around the state.

“I am impressed with the degree of commitment to our core business among superintendents in Louisiana and the resolve to work together to advance student learning. It is an exciting time to be working to improve public education in Louisiana,” Sloan said.

LASE Executive Director Rogers Pope said the parish is well-respected in the state for being pro-active in education and, “(Sloan) is the leader of that movement.”

In addition, Pope said Sloan’s grasp and knowledge of education and educational issues, her interest in professional organizations, the way she works with her staff and the overall way she does business in St. Tammany led to her selection by her peers.

Sloan, a native of Mandeville, started her career 37 years ago. She has held positions in all phases of education: teaching second through eighth grades, Resource Helping Teacher, assistant principal, principal, supervisory of elementary education and assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction.

Leading the school system since 2003 as superintendent, Sloan has said that the most important event of last spring was the passage of the bond issue.

At that time, she said it signaled that the community recognizes the need for continuing funding support for technology.

Policies implemented by the School Board under her administration include an in-house conservative effort that has resulted in $2 million in energy cost avoidance for the school system; assistant principals in almost every school; the rebuilding efforts from Hurricane Katrina that leave only three facilities remaining to be completed; and the professional development of faculty members, including the NASA/LaSPACE Michoud Education Fellows pilot program that began this past summer.

Sloan has said that although only six students did not graduate in 2008 due to their GEE scores, her goal is that all students pass the GEE and graduate.

Always looking ahead to the future, Sloan and the school system plan to revisit and revise the strategic plan created in 2004. She has said that since the global market and workforce is dominating the world, different skills are needed to be successful as an adult in the workplace.

Sloan has said the school system needs to continue initiatives, gather momentum, increase professional development, information technology support and continue to use resources effectively.