IN Fox Chapel Area Winter 2019 | Page 16

SUPERINTENDENT LOOKING FORWARD TO SPENDING MORE TIME WITH FAMILY A s superintendent of the Fox Chapel Area School District, Gene Freeman, Ed.D., sees children on a regular basis. He admits, though, that some of his attention these days is on a little girl who lives more than 2,000 miles away. Dr. Freeman became a grandfather in January when his daughter, Alexandra, and her husband, Brad, welcomed Emma Joyce to their family. It didn’t take long after meeting his first grandchild for Dr. Freeman to know he wanted to spend more time with his family. Realizing he wouldn’t be able to make that happen with the long hours and other demands that come with being Fox Chapel Area’s superintendent, he made what he called a “very difficult decision” to step down from his post in June 2020. “Being a grandparent has changed my perspective on how I spend my time,” Dr. Freeman said. “This certainly wasn’t a decision that I expected to make, but I feel that it’s the right decision at the right time for me.” Dr. Freeman and his wife, Allison, plan to spend time in Nevada, where his daughter lives and is an elementary school teacher, and also in his home state of North Carolina, where his 84-year-old mother still resides. While he said he’s pleased with the district’s solid finances and the working relationship he’s had with the staff, Dr. Freeman said he’s most proud of the focus on educating the whole child in the five years that he’s been at the helm of Fox Chapel Area. “I’m really proud that when I got here, it was a good district, and I’m leaving it a great district. Our success is noted, and it can’t be denied.” Dr. Freeman cites a rise in local, regional, and national rankings, and an improvement in the district’s test scores. For example, in 2019, the Fox Chapel Area School District was named among the top five school districts in the state by the Pittsburgh Business Times. In Niche’s 2020 rankings, the district ranked in the top 1% of schools nationally in the categories of Best School Districts, Districts Dr. Freeman’s daughter, Alexandra, with her daughter, Emma. 14 FOX CHAPEL AREA Superintendent Gene Freeman, Ed.D., with his mother, Joyce; his daughter, Alexandra; and his granddaughter, Emma. with the Best Teachers, Best Places to Teach, and Safest School Districts. “I believe that Gene’s legacy is the fact he always did what he felt was best for the students in the district, regardless of whether it was a popular decision,” said former Fox Chapel Area School Board Vice President Nancy Foster. “He saw the potential in each and every student. He put touchpoints in place to provide frequent feedback to the teachers on each of their students to ensure they were grasping the concepts being covered. He wanted to make sure each student grew year to year regardless of their starting level. The success of this program is evident in the improvement in our rankings.” The benchmarking process that Dr. Freeman implemented shortly after arriving at Fox Chapel Area also garnered praise from parents. “Dr. Freeman made changes that led to noticeable improvements in our kids’ educational experiences,” said Susan Buchman of O’Hara Township. Ashley Constantine, Ed.D., the district’s executive director of elementary education and instruction, said another legacy of Dr. Freeman’s will be the innovative programs he conceptualized, namely the Pre-Kindergarten and Spanish Immersion classrooms, which opened at Kerr Elementary School at the beginning of the 2019-2020 school year. “Thanks to Dr. Freeman, both programs are making a significant impact on the achievement and growth of our students,” Dr. Constantine said. “We are sad to see him go but wish him the best of luck.”