New D-11 chief pledges forward steps

       Sharon Thomas, who was hired as superintendent of District 11 this year, pledged efforts to make it one of the best school districts “in the state and nation.” But she admitted that the district still has a ways to go, in terms of achievement and public perception, in her roughly 20-minute talk to the Garden of the Gods Rotary Club Nov. 15.
       Even in the Pikes Peak region, “we're the stepchild,” she half-joked, noting that many people tend to speak more highly of Academy District 20 and one or two others. “But I'll put our people up against those in any other districts,” she said. “Our staff is committed and extremely talented.”
       She spoke optimistically of the future, following an election which passed the district's $131.7 million buildings bond issue and appears to have settled the political situation for the Board of Education for the next two years. “We have board members who all believe in higher education,” she said. “I believe that.”
       Thomas' connection with District 11 started in 1984. She served at different times as an assistant principal, principal, personnel director and (after receiving a law degree) district legal counsel. From 2002 till this year, she was superintendent of Little Falls Community Schools in Minnesota, which has two high schools. She replaced former District 11 Superintendent Norm Ridder this summer.

Westside Pioneer article