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Richland School District's superintendent announced Tuesday that she plans to retire at the end of the academic year.
Jean Lane has been with the district about 19 years and took over the top administrative post in 2008.
She said she loves the district, her colleagues and the work, but is looking forward to spending more time with family. It feels like the right time to step down, she said.
"I consider my time in the Richland School District as the pinnacle of my career in education," she wrote in a letter to staff. "The privilege of serving our community as a principal, central office administrator and superintendent has been a gift to me and my family."
Lane won't be going anywhere soon. She'll finish out the coming school year as superintendent.
She announced her plans to retire a year in advance to give the school board ample time to find a replacement, she said.
Board members said her shoes will be hard to fill.
"You've given 19 years of service (to Richland schools). You've touched hundreds of thousands of lives. We appreciate the work you've done," said Rick Jansons, board president.
Other board members praised Lane's skills as a leader. She's loved and respected by district staff, said Heather Cleary, board vice president.
Lane announced her retirement at Tuesday's regular school board meeting.
She began her 37-year career in education as a teacher in her hometown of Newport.
She later taught in Kennewick and Dayton before coming to Richland.
She was principal of Marcus Whitman Elementary School on Gray Street from 1992-99 and later served as the district's executive director of elementary education, assistant superintendent of instruction and deputy superintendent.
She replaced longtime Superintendent Richard Semler after he retired in the summer of 2008.
Lane said her years in Richland have been rewarding. Under her guidance as superintendent, the district has gone through a new and more in-depth strategic planning process that involved more than 100 staff, parents and community members.
The process was aimed at helping the district set priorities to guide it through the next several years.
The district also helped start the new Delta High School, a regional public school focused on science, technology, engineering and math that's set to open in a few weeks. The Kennewick and Pasco school districts, Battelle, Washington State University Tri-Cities and Columbia Basin College also are partners in the school.
And Richland schools also are weathering the deep state budget cuts that have prompted layoffs in districts across Washington. It appears the district's 2009-10 budget -- which is set to be adopted in a couple weeks -- won't include layoffs or cutting student programs.
Lane, 58, said she'll truly miss working in the district. Staff members -- from administrators to maintenance workers -- are bright, enthusiastic and strive to put students first, she said.
Lane said she'll likely do some education consulting in retirement.
She'll also spend time with her husband, Gary, a former teacher, and their two adult daughters who live in Seattle.
For now, Lane is focused on the coming school year.
"I look forward to this school year with enthusiasm and energy," she wrote in the letter to staff. "As 10,000 students walk through our doors for a fresh beginning, I know that all of us will work together to help them reach their goals."
The board plans to hire a firm to help in the search for Lane's replacement.
w Sara Schilling: 582-1402; sschilling@tricityherald.com
