LAKE CHARLES, La. (AP) — A southwest Louisiana schools superintendent is leaving his post after eight years in the role.
Calcasieu Parish Schools Superintendent Karl Bruchhaus announced his retirement Wednesday. Effective June 30, Bruchhaus will leave after 34 years serving Louisiana public school systems, 26 of them with Calcasieu Parish.
“It has truly been so rewarding to be part of the great Calcasieu Parish education family for the last 26 years, but especially the last eight years as superintendent,” he said. “The huge responsibility to contribute to the success of an entire generation of students is only possible with the daily efforts of the wonderful group of administrators, teachers and support employees here in Calcasieu.”
Bruchhaus’ contract is scheduled to end in 2024, but with national averages for district superintendents’ tenure averaging only 2.5 years he said he knew his time would be up sooner, The American Press reported.
“I had an inkling that I wouldn’t make it that far just because 10 or 11 years as superintendent is a lot with all of the things going on,” he said.
Despite the tremendous difficulties of hurricanes and COVID-19, Bruchhaus said neither played a role in his decision to retire.
“While those two things certainly created a level of difficulty, gave me a lot of gray hair, there just comes a point where sometimes in a school system a new outlook and fresh outlook is needed,” he said.
Members of the Calcasieu Parish School Board will soon begin the search for the next superintendent, but Bruchhaus said he will have very limited involvement in the process.
“What I’ve offered to the board — Mrs. Ballard, the board president, I told her I would be a resource in any way they needed me to be for the remainder of my time. What I will not do is get involved in the politics of choosing the new person,” he said.
Bruchhaus said he will not provide any recommendations or any comments on the candidates. Should the board choose to hire from inside the district, there are “quite a few outstanding candidates” who have been able to gain quite a bit of experience, he added.
He said he believes that the district's next leader must be in the business of caring for people.
“Education will always be a people business. … If you don’t do that in this job, you lose the faith and support of not only the employees but the community. The person in this job needs to demonstrate outwardly that people are what’s important. That’s where the rubber meets the road," he said.
After his retirement, Bruchhaus said he intends to continue working full time, likely in management elsewhere.
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