It was a touching farewell for David Klein, superintendent of Lyme-Old Lyme Schools, on Feb. 29. While the adult movers and shakers, elected officials, staff, and well-wishers feted him on the previous evening, the Friday afternoon affair at Lyme-Old Lyme Middle School was one class act by the students of the District 18 schools.
Past and present school board members and Klein's family were present for the sometimes teary-eyed send-off. A larger-than life cut-out photo of the superintendent greeted students and adults alike.
Klein came to the district in 1995 as LOL Middle School principal and became the district's superintendent in December 2000, after serving briefly as assistant superintendent in Ledyard. He has moved on to be superintendent of Madison Public Schools. The district has named John Whritner interim superintendent and has started its search for someone to fill the permanent role.
At the "Celebration of Excellence" send-off, each of the schools from Lyme and Old Lyme presented Klein with a memento. Lyme Consolidated School fifth-graders Alix Turner and Sam Winters presented him with a quaint wall hanging.
The Mile Creek School in Old Lyme literally rolled out a red carpet for Mr. Klein, using it as an alphabet learning lesson. "M" stood for "Magnificent Boss," among other things, "K" was for "Knows a lot," "L" for "Life-long learner," "E" for "Expert in Education," and "N" stood for "Nice person" and "There's no one like you."
Singers from Lyme-Old Lyme High School sang him a ballad and presented him with a hand-painted portrait. Students from the middle school, which he knows well, reminded him of that "the Middle is the best place to be."
Lynn Fairfield-Sonn, former school board chair, led the program of appreciation. Susan Fogliano, the incoming board chair, and Donna Dean, representative of the parent groups, also thanked Klein for all he had done for the district. A common theme was his integrity, fairness, and how he served as a "moral compass."
Klein said the move to the larger school district was the next step for him as a leader and noted that he had been recruited and selected for the Madison position. The Klein family will continue to live in Old Lyme, where Tricia, his wife, is a fourth-grade teacher at Center School.
"It's not felt like work, there's never been a day that I haven't wanted to come to work," Klein told the students and adults. Despite the impasse over how to fix the existing high school and how much to spend doing it, Klein called the community "generous of education."
Klein said it wasn't his own accomplishments in the school district as much as it was the people in the community and their morals and values "that helps students see what is inside themselves, these special gifts."
He credited past and present boards and the partnership of
parents working with what he called exceptionally talented and unselfish teachers and support staff who treat the children in the district's schools like their own.
Although he will now be "Citizen Klein" in the community, some of his admirers have set up the David J. Klein Scholarship for Outstanding Character to continue his legacy in the schools. The scholarship has been established to further the post-secondary education of a Lyme-Old Lyme High School student who has shown extraordinary kindness, courage, and compassion. Former school board member Mary Stone announced on Friday that donations to date were more than $11,000.