A dessert reception was held on Feb. 28 to honor Clarke County District Superintendent Dr. Philip Lanoue. Lanoue will be stepping down from his position as CCSD Superintendent of Schools and Dr. Jack Parish will temporarily be taking his position. “I will miss his energy,” Clarke Middle School principal Tad MacMillan said. Photo by Lucia Bermudez.
By DELIA ADAMSON – Print News Editor
A dessert reception was held to honor former Clarke County School District Superintendent Dr. Philip Lanoue for his eight years of achievement on Feb. 28.
A dessert reception was held on Feb. 28 at the Athens Community Career Academy in the Heritage Hall to honor Clarke County School District Superintendent Dr. Philip Lanoue for his eight years of educational service to CCSD.
“He is a man of just great character,” Clarke Middle School Principal Tad Macmillan said. “He changed the way we thought about what we did and said, ‘No, everything starts with what is good for our children and we got to do whatever it takes.’”
Lanoue will be stepping down from the CCSD Superintendent of Schools position and Dr. Jack Parish, former Associate Dean for Outreach and Engagement in the College of Education at the University of Georgia, has been appointed to temporarily fill this position as the interim Superintendent.
“There is nobody better than (Lanoue). He is such a loving, giving person and he actually cares about the kids and about everybody,” Athens Heritage committee member Elizabeth Platt said. “I just think he is so special and I am going to miss him.”
There were many CCSD employees in attendance at the event and a variety of cakes were provided by Cecilia Villaveces Cakes for the guests to enjoy.
Lanoue feels that he has spent a good amount of time as the CCSD Superintendent and hopes that the district continues to make great strides in education.
“I will miss the adults, but I miss the students. I go in (classrooms) and I know a lot of them,” Lanoue said. “I guess to know that hopefully you make decisions that make a difference for someone as individuals or as a group, it’s really rewarding.”
