WESTON — Longtime D.C. Everest Area School District Superintendent Kristine Gilmore will retire her post effective June 30, 2022, the D.C. Everest Area District School Board announced today.
The school board approved Gilmore’s notice of retirement during a special session on Nov. 17 and will begin the search for qualified candidates immediately.
During her 19-year tenure as superintendent, Gilmore led a team of staff in the service of one mission: Help every student identify his or her strengths, develop the skills for a successful future, and discover a pathway suited to his or her particular interests.
“Dr. Gilmore has always championed the needs and wellbeing of our students, staff and community,” said DCE School Board President Katie Felch in a news release. “To serve those interests, she has led our district in becoming an early adopter of technologies that provide learning opportunities for all students, redefined how we measure student achievement, ensured staff have ample opportunity for advancement and professional development, established valuable community partnerships, and completed districtwide updates in a fiscally responsible manner.”
Gilmore began her career with the district in 1997 as the DCE Junior High assistant principal and athletic director. She then served consecutive terms as Evergreen Elementary principal and DCE Middle School principal from 2000-2003.
According to the school district: During her 25 years of service to the district, Gilmore and her staff launched a district-wide initiative to establish a K-12 STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art/Design, Math) learning environment emphasizing critical thinking, creativity, problem-solving, collaboration, independence, communication, and social-emotional awareness. She and her team invested in innovative programs such as the 1:1 program, ensuring all students have access to digital learning and instructional tools. A comprehensive K-12 Academic and Planning program was established to help students develop academic and career pathways while tracking their progress on digital dashboards. Traditional classrooms also have incorporated personalized learning spaces, and community partnerships have opened the door to internships and apprenticeships that offer students valuable workplace learning experiences. These efforts culminated in the creation of the district’s Portrait of a Graduate, a series of research-based metrics that assess a student’s life, career and academic preparedness while serving as guideposts to help them make informed choices about the courses, activities, community service, and work-based learning experiences they engage in based on their personal and professional goals.
Additionally, during her tenure Gilmore and her team successfully passed a recurring $4 million referendum for district repair projects exceeding the revenue limit and an $18.9 million referendum to build Mountain Bay Elementary. In April 2018, the $59.8 million FutureReady referendum passed with overwhelming support from community members and businesses. The districtwide FutureReady projects improved the safety of facilities, reduced crowding, upgraded classrooms to 21stcentury standards and provided necessary infrastructure updates.
Gilmore also led the district through Act 10 changes, guided the district through a community-shooting crisis and COVID-19 pandemic, and oversaw the establishment of the Idea School, Mountain Bay Elementary, the Greenheck Fieldhouse Health/Wellness Center and Odyssey Elementary. Each of these initiatives and transitions have resulted in greater opportunities for past, current and future D.C. Everest students.
