Alumnus Philip Lanoue, Clarke County, Ga., school superintendent, was recognized Feb. 27 with the American Association of School Administrators' top honor: 2015 National Superintendent of the Year. The road to achieving this distinction began in his home state of Vermont, where following his 1978 graduation from UVM with a degree in secondary education science he first served as a high school biology teacher. 

It didn’t take long for Lanoue, who received his master of education degree in secondary education from UVM in 1985, to establish himself as an innovative educator and cutting edge administrator. He became the youngest principal in the state at age 30 at Vergennes Union High School after teaching science at Milton High and serving as assistant principal at Champlain Valley Union High School. He was named principal at Burlington High School only a few years later and was honored as National Association of Secondary School Principals Vermont Principal of the Year before leaving the state to become prinicpal at Weston High School -- the top-ranked high school in Massachusetts and the 36th best in America by Newsweek magazine. While there, Lanoue was named one of the Top 50 Technological Innovators in Education and Boston Northwest Principal of the Year.

“I was born and raised in Vermont and spent the first part of my career there," said Lanoue, who grew up in Sheldon and was a hockey and football star at BFA-St. Albans. “My time at UVM has served me well over the years and really prepared me for my career in education. My undergraduate degree provided me the big picture while my graduate work allowed me to think larger in systems. I made a lot of good friends at UVM  who I remain in touch with today.”   

Lanoue's career continued its upward trajectory when he moved to Atlanta to serve as assistant school superintendent in Cobb County -- one of Atlanta's largest school districts. In 2009, he took over as superintendent of the Clarke County (Athens, Ga,) School District, which was named a Title I Distinguished District in 2013 for closing the achievement gap between economically disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged students more than any other large school district in the state. Lanoue also created partnerships with the University of Georgia that sends students from UGA’s College of Education into Clarke’s public schools to teach and interact with K-12 students, who in turn, visit UGA to experience campus life and consider attending college.

“To be recognized by your peers is something I honor, but more importantly, it’s great recognition for the work being done in our community,” said Lanoue in a press release from the AASA. “This recognition for me is really a recognition for our district, teachers, school leaders, parents, students and all of our community constituencies who have faith in the work we’re doing.” 

PUBLISHED

02-28-2015
Jon Reidel