LIVERMORE FALLS — New Regional School Unit 73 Superintendent Todd LeRoy got into education to work with kids. He kept moving up the line because he wanted to have a larger impact on students.

“I enjoy seeing the results of their working hard. Giving every we can to our kids is really what it’s all about,” he said. “We live in a time when money is tight. As taxes grow, people are worried about dollars and cents.”

LeRoy said it is a joy and a privilege to work in a place where he can work with kids, shake their hands as they receive their diplomas, see them as they are growing up.

“Where else in the world can you have such an impact on the future?” he noted.

LeRoy plans to work with his staff and principals to help them become experts in standard based education.

“The change to proficiency based education was made without giving teachers the background they needed. I want to provide them with experiences that will help them grow so the students can succeed.

“Seeing students fly. It boils down to that more than anything else.

“These kids are our future. Employers want kids that are team players, problem solvers.

“The whole way of teaching has changed. I hope to provide teachers with the experiences and training they need to make sure kids can succeed.

“I believe all kids have talents and gifts. We need to find what they are as educators and help them use them. When students learn how to successful, education becomes more enjoyable. They continue to get better and better.

“My goal is to find ways for students to succeed, enjoy what they’re doing so education isn’t something they have to do but they want to do,” he said.

LeRoy said it’s not a specific program that is the important piece, it is the process and the teachers.

“The success of students relies more on the teacher in the classroom and less on the program being used. It’s all about good teaching.

“It’s not the size of the classroom, it’s the quality of the teacher. A good teacher will help students be successful regardless of what they are using.

“Every student is different, learns differently. It’s all about getting kids experiences that will help them grow,” he said. “As teaches and administrators, we have to provide methods for kids to be successful.”

LeRoy said in the past students fell through the cracks. He feels an assembly line concept is not the best way for kids to learn.

“I’m happy to be here. We’ve got some things that need to be done but I have no doubt that we have the expertise to get it done. The people around me are taking care of their tasks. That’s what makes a superintendent’s job wonderful,” he said.

LeRoy spent the last two years as superintendent of RSU 50. Prior to that he was superintendent of RSU 59, Madison, for five years after two years heading up Madawaska.

Before coming to Maine, he was superintendent of Silver Lake Joint School District 1 which serves Silver Lake and part of Salem, Wisconsin, for three year. His first job as superintendent was three years in Plum City, Wisconsin.

LeRoy was an assistant principal for one year. He was a high school English teacher for 12 years prior to that.

LeRoy grew up in Gurnee, Illinois, which is 15 minutes from the Wisconsin border. He went to college in Wisconsin.

LeRoy and his wife, Natalie, have one daughter, Mackenzie Lee Kundinger, an elementary school teacher in Wisconsin. She has a daughter “Addie” who is about a year old.

pharnden@sunmediagroup.net