CHARLES TOWN, W.Va. – Jefferson County Schools Superintendent Dr. Bondy Shay Gibson Learn has announced her retirement, effective June 30, 2023. The board of education will meet to determine how they will search for a new superintendent.
In a Tuesday announcement from the school district, Dr. Gibson-Learn said serving as superintendent had been the privilege of her professional life.
“I am enormously grateful for the relationships I have built with the many amazing employees, parents, and students of Jefferson County Schools,” she said.
Dr. Gibson-Learn said that she has been working to balance the needs of the school district with her family’s needs, which factored into her decision.
“While the position of a Superintendent has always required significant attention and presence for the job, the intensity of those demands has increased exponentially over the past several years.”
Gibson-Learn was appointed as superintendent of Jefferson County Schools in 2015.
Among the accomplishments listed in the JCS announcement were improvements in the county’s retention and recruitment plan, two new elementary schools being built, and a one-to-one technology initiative.
“Jefferson County Schools has an incredible staff, amazing students, and a supportive and engaged community. I can retire knowing that the future is bright for this district,” the outgoing superintendent said.
Jefferson County Board of Education President Kathryn Skinner said, “Dr. Gibson-Learn built upon the hard work of her predecessors and left us in a better place than when she started.”
The news release from the county touts her accomplishments.
“Throughout her 32-year career in public education, Dr. Gibson-Learn has served as a classroom teacher at the elementary and secondary levels, a provider of mental health services, a director of workforce development, and an education administrator at the county and state levels.”