Bueschel leaves with fond memories
Published on March 4th, 1998
STONEHAM, MA - She fell in love with the town the first day she arrived. It was the spring of 1987 and Dr. Ellen Bueschel was coming to Stoneham to assume the new position of su-perintendent of schools.
"I still remember, the Rhododendrons were in full bloom," said Bueschel. "It was a beautiful sight. I fell in love with this town right away."
Bueschel spent seven and a half years as assistant superintendent before replacing Dr. Wil-liam Hoyt three years ago.
Last month, Bueschel announced that due to family commitments in Illinois, she would be resigning before the end of the school year. This past Friday, a teary-eyed superintendent packed up materials and said her good-byes on her last day.
"I have just loved being here," said Bueschel. "Most people do not have the opportunity to come to work everyday and like what they do."
Bueschel believes her legacy will be left with the people she has hired. With just a few ex-ceptions, Bueschel has hired most of the current administrative staff in the system.
"It's the people who make the difference," said Bueschel. "I've tried to hire skilled, talented and diverse individuals to compliment each other. The best thing any superintendent can do is hire the best people and get out of their way."
The most obvious highlights during Bueschel's tenure was Money Magazine's ranking of Stoneham as one of country's top 100 values in public education and the approval of the $40 million elementary school renovation project this past January.
"The building project was my life work for the last few years," said Bueschel. "I was so ex-cited to see the plan pass in every precinct in the town. It was a community wide effort for the kids of this town.
"There is a commitment to education in this community. This town cares about their chil-dren and it shows in so many ways. There couldn't have been a better climate for a superinten-dent to succeed in."
When asked to list other highlights, Bueschel said less newsworthy events like watching student performances at the Carnival Ball and elementary school plays will always remain in her fond memories.
She was also happy to see the restoration of the high school band before she left because "that was part of budget cutting during the difficult financial times."
She said those budget cuts each spring were the most unpleasant part of her job.
"Lately it hasn't been as bad, but it's always a struggle, but we'll continue to deal with budget issues because of rising enrollments and buildings in need of maintenance," said Bueschel.
But with the South School renovation project set to begin late this summer; nearly all col-lective bargaining agreements settled for three more years and curriculum matters under the watchful eye of Asst. Supt. Dr. Elizabeth Keroack, Bueschel is leaving a thriving school sys-tem headed in the right direction.
It's a path Bueschel helped mapped out 10 years ago and then led to prosperity.
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