Rocky View Schools (RVS) Superintendent of Schools Don Hoium will retire at the conclusion of the 2015/16 school year, following a 37-year career in the education sector.
“I’ll be looking forward to some more family and travel time. It will be a change. I came out of school and (started) in education at 22 years old,” Hoium said. “It will be a real adjustment.”
Hoium, who joined RVS in 2014, cited personal and family reasons as motivation for his retirement. He said RVS initiatives such as the 2015-19 Four Year Plan as well as a division-wide literacy and numeracy framework were among highlights of his time with the division.
“There’s been a lot of accomplishments in (RVS) over the last three years. I’ve been fortunate to support these major initiatives,” he said. “Everything we do is hinged on care and compassion and what supports are needed to help students learn.
“The work that has gone on with literacy and numeracy framework, how that will start to be implemented over the next several years, it will be a lot of hard work. It will build on what our teachers are doing and bring the division to the next level.”
RVS Board Chair Colleen Munro said Hoium helped to define a number of legacy projects at the school division.
“We’re very sad to see him go. He’s been a really calm, stable and learned leader for Rocky View Schools,” she said. “He’s been working in the business for nearly 40 years. His experience was one of the reasons why the last board thought he was going to be a good fit, and that has certainly held true. We will miss him, but we certainly wish him well.”
Rocky View Alberta Teachers Association 35 president Michelle Glavine said Hoium would be “sadly missed.”
“The teachers of Rocky View greatly appreciated working with Don and having Don as their district leader. We wish him well in the future. He was fantastic,” she said. “He did a lot for teaching and learning and he supported teachers. He had the best interests for students at heart.”
A Saskatchewan native, Hoium said he was unsure whether he would remain in the area or return to Saskatoon.
“We’re just going to take our time. We quite enjoy this Calgary area, but we do have family and commitments in Saskatoon,” he said. “I’ll miss the people in the division, and I’ll miss the communities. Everyone was very welcoming. I’ve made good friends out in the community.”
