Farewell, Doc

When he returned to his hometown in 2012, Eugene "Doc" Sanders initially thought he'd have a temporary gig as Sandusky Schools' top official. But soon, Sanders, a 1976 Sandusky High School graduate who led Toledo Public and Cleveland Metropolitan schools, sought to stay. In July, Sanders will retire from his full-time superintendent duties after guiding his alma mater to excellence during the past 10 years. He plans to stay involved as an executive coach and adviser to district board members for one year, beginning in August. During his education career, which spans more than 40 years, he's worked as a teacher, high school principal, college professor, consultant and superintendent. Sanders reflected on his life and career during a recent interview with the Register: Reporter: What inspired you to become an educator and when did you begin considering that career? Sanders: I began to think about becoming an educator during my high school years. I was always impressed with my teachers, coaches and administrators. I had an older brother who taught at Sandusky City Schools. By the time I was a freshman at Bowling Green State University, I was confident that becoming an educator in Sandusky was my primary goal. R: What educator(s) in your life made a positive impact on you? S: While I have been blessed to have a number of educators who helped to mentor and guide me in becoming an educator, I would say there are two individuals who helped to significantly frame my viewpoint on this matter — Coach Bobby Langdon and Mrs. Francine Newell. Coach Langdon was my eighth-grade health and physical education teacher and Mrs. Newell was my homeroom teacher (all four years of high school). Coach Langdon was my mentor and adviser. He and I had many conversations early in my career and was instrumental in my life choices. Mrs. Newell insisted that I become the homeroom representative for student council at Sandusky High School, which started my interest in leadership at the high school level. I ultimately rose to become the vice president of our junior class. My parents, American and Lena Sanders, were also significant influencers on my choice to become an educator and leader in my church and community. My parents had significantly high expectations for education, faith and community service. My ultimate goal in life is to conduct my professional and personal business in a manner that would reflect their legacy for our family. I would be remiss not to mention the following community leaders who were instrumental in supporting my dream, to be an educator: namely Rev. Curtis A. Brown, former pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church; Rev. Eddy Henry, former pastor of the New Jerusalem Baptist Church; and Rev. W. Benson Stephens, former pastor of Second Baptist Church. Rev. Thomas Darden, Mr. Richard Ashburn, Mr. Seavers and my former eighth-grade history teacher, Mrs. Patricia Vorhees, also had a positive impact and influence on my decision to pursue the field of education. R: What did you enjoy most about teaching years ago and about being an administrator as your career progressed? S: I have always enjoyed the notion that I have the opportunity, as an educator, to change the life of a student or family. Educators are so essential and valuable to the life of children, that the right conversation at the right time with the right student can change the projection of history. Educators are powerful leaders, and I have always wanted to make a difference in the life of a child. R: Why did you decide to return to your alma mater and hometown 10 years ago? Who or what convinced you to return? S: I was honored to receive a phone call from Mrs. Faith Denslow, who was serving as the president of the Sandusky board of education in the summer of 2012 and Richard Koonce, who was serving as a board member. I recall having a delightful conversation with both of them and it was apparent that the board needed an experienced superintendent to serve as the interim superintendent for a year. I recently retired from Cleveland Metropolitan Schools, and thought that coming home for a year would be a great opportunity to work for my hometown school district, be with my family and enjoy a year of working with colleagues and friends. I came back home because the faculty and staff of Sandusky City Schools had always been a supporter of mine. I was always proud to be a "Blue Streak" and represent Sandusky. I felt this would be a wonderful opportunity to give back to a school district, which had given so much to me. Within the first couple of months, it became apparent to me that I should stay more than one year, as there were critical organizational areas within the district that needed more attention. Ten years later, I am retiring from Sandusky City Schools. My decision to come home was divinely determined and focused on giving back to an organization that had played such a tremendous role in my professional and personal life. My mother, Mrs. Lena Sanders, was aging and I felt it would be a blessing to spend quality time with her in the same city. My mother was my biggest cheerleader and supporter, and I knew she would like nothing better than to tell her church family and friends that her son was the chief executive officer and superintendent of Sandusky City Schools. R: During your 10-year tenure at Sandusky City Schools, what accomplishments are you most proud of? Who do you credit for helping to make them happen? S: Over the last couple of months, I have had time to think about the accomplishments of our team over the last 10 years. I have put together my "10 Most Memorable Moments of the Last 10 Years in the Sandusky City Schools." Here is a quick synopsis of those accomplishments: • Restoring pride, tradition and excellence of Sandusky City Schools. The district has always had pride, tradition and excellence. One of the areas where I believe my team excelled was in creating energy, excitement, enthusiasm and engagement around the school district and community. Our rallies, forums, community gatherings and events focus on our kids and families, and helped to reclaim our energy and renewed our commitment to our core values. Examples include the Blue Streak Pride 5K, community partnership, Parent Summit, the Global Internship Experience and the Superintendent's Executive Leadership Academy. These initiatives and others resulted in the district receiving national recognition as a "District of Distinction in 2018." • District awards and recognition. Over the last 10 years, the district has received numerous awards and recognition, including an Ohio School Public Relations Award and the only five star award-winning preschool program in the city. • Strong student leadership. Our students are simply amazing. We have enhanced our programs and offerings so that our students have several options to choose from (50 different sports, clubs and programs). We are very proud of our Blue Streak University college credit offerings which resulted in six students receiving their associate degree from Bowling Green State University and their high school diploma at the same time in 2022. Our annual State of the Schools address recognizes students in all grades (from elementary through high school) for their exemplary work. One of my personal favorites was the "Picnic and Bike Ride with the CEO and Superintendent" in 2018. • Building the Aquatic Center at Sandusky High School. Without question, one of the most memorable moments in my tenure is the approval that was granted to construct a new pool at Sandusky High School. The current pool, built in 1957, is in need of significant updates. Our new facility will have two pools; The first pool will be an eight lane "competition pool" and the second will be a "teaching pool," where all third graders in the district will be required to complete a water safety class. Thank you to the Sandusky Education Foundation and the multiple foundations and donors; the goal has become a reality in 24 months. • Reaching a continuous improvement ranking on the state report card. Sandusky City Schools was the first urban district in Ohio to receive the designation of continuous improvement on the Ohio report card. It is due to the efforts of amazing, dedicated, loyal teachers, principals and support staff that allow us to achieve this goal. We are on our way to an excellent rating. • Parent and community engagement. Our yearly Parent Summit has become a "must attend" event for parents and community members. We average more than 500 parents in attendance at this event, where we highlight our school-parent partnership. The Parent Congress and Parent-Teacher associations are stronger than ever. I am grateful to all the volunteers who continue to give of their time to better the lives of students. • Management and leadership during the global pandemic. Our faculty and staff, led by our board of education, managed to gain progress and momentum during the global pandemic. and our team stayed together and focused on children. This is among my proudest moments. • Transformation, innovation and market-driven leadership by the board of education. Our board members embraced the initial transformation plan in 2014 and are focusing and looking ahead to the Envision 2030: Building Capacity and Strengthening Innovation. Our goal continues to focus on providing a dynamic and robust curriculum so our students can compete with anyone in the world. This is a passion for our board members and leadership team. • The "Building Better Dreams" facilities initiative. The second most memorable experience of mine is the completion of the "Building Better Dreams" initiative, the largest construction project (to construct three new schools) in the nearly 200-year history of Sandusky City Schools. It has changed the educational landscape of our district for the next century. Thank you to all the voters and citizens of our community that made this vision a reality. • A 94% graduation rate at Sandusky High School. My number one most memorable and enjoyable moment was when it was announced that Sandusky High School had achieved a 94% graduation rate. It literally brought tears to my eyes. It reflects the hard work of every single employee and is certainly a clear and measurable tool of how competitive we are with our area schools. R: What have you learned from your tenure as superintendent of Sandusky City Schools? S: I have learned the following: when people of good will, good intentions and all have a common goal, anything is possible. Three things have been confirmed: I live in a great city, attended an outstanding school district and it is certainly my honor to place another brick in the wall that reflects the pride, tradition and excellence of Sandusky City Schools. R: What general life advice/guiding principles have you abided by during your more than 40 years in education? S: I have attempted to live my personal and professional life that would make my parents, American and Lena Sanders proud. I continue each day to try to live by four core priorities of life as it relates to my contribution on earth. My four guiding core priorities: (a.) faith in God, (b.) commitment to my faith in God, (c.) commitment to my family and (d.) commitment to making the world a better place. R: Before he begins his tenure at Sandusky Schools, what advice do you have for your successor, Daniel Rambler? S: My simple advice to Mr. Rambler is to work with our community to continue a path of growth and advancement for all of our children and families. R: What will you miss most about leading Sandusky City Schools? S: The children, families, faculty and staff. R: What do you look forward to in retirement? Do you have any hobbies you'd like to cultivate or traveling to do? S: I look forward to continuing my life's mission to impact education and children. I plan to expand on the work that state level superintendents connected to the Ohio Mid-Sized Urban District Leadership Collaborative are looking to complete. I would like to teach a class on leadership at a university, write and complete my second book and contribute to scholarly manuscripts. I do intend to improve my golf game and visit with family and friends in my free time.