Hannahs retiring as Barnesville superintendent
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BARNESVILLE -- Angie Hannahs is looking back on a successful career in the Barnesville Exempted Village School District and looking forward to retirement, having served as superintendent for the past seven years.
She and incoming superintendent Micah Fuchs were available to talk with The Times Leader this week.
"I've been in education for 34 years and thought it was just time for me to walk the walk of a retired individual. I've been with Barnesville about 17 years and love my time here. Looking forward to the next chapter. I know Micah Fuchs will do an excellent job as superintendent," Hannas said.
Hannahs said she learned an appreciation for education at an early age
"My dad was an educator. My mom taught Sunday school. So I come from a family of educators so I thought it would be a good fit for me and what I like to do. I started out my career as a high school English teacher at Union Local. I went to work at the county at a coordinator of gifted programs role," she said. "I first came to Barnesville as the elementary principal, then became the curriculum coordinator and eventually the superintendent.
"I love learning. I love the fact that kids learn. I love to be around kids. I love to be around staff. I want to make school a great experience for kids. I just loved everything about it," she said.
Hannahs thought back to some of the strides the school district has made over the years. In terms of technology, she said the district is now one-to-one with a device for each student from kindergarten through 12th grade. There have also been improvements in college options, College Credit-Plus, trades, and internships.
Hannahs also pointed out improvements to facilities, such as a new bus garage, and most recently the field improvements at Shamrock Stadium.
"I followed a very capable superintendent in Randy Lucas, so I learned under him and felt that it was a pretty easy transition for me when I became superintendent. We've accomplished a lot of things," she said. "Just trying to make sure we're maintaining our facilities the way that they should be."
She said challenges included unfunded mandates from the Ohio Department of Education.
Hannahs was also at the helm during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. There has been widespread concern about the effects of the pandemic and remote learning.
"We did what we had to do. We took it on, took the challenge on and complied with what the state was requiring of us to do. And we tried to stay open as much as we could, providing quality instruction for students, and I think that we continue to do that. We offer after-school tutoring and additional instruction for students with special needs, and we felt like we are filling some of the gaps that some of our students experienced during COVID," she said.
Hannahs said she plans to enjoy her time in retirement. She will officially step down at the end of September.