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Boardman schools Superintendent retires after 44 years with the district
BOARDMAN
People always told Boardman schools Superintendent Frank Lazzeri he’d just know when it was time for him to retire.
That didn’t turn out to be true, he told The Vindicator in an interview reflecting on his 44-year career with the school district that officially came to a close last week.
“I still enjoy the job,” he said. “I could do this for another 10 years, but you have to come to the realization that life is fleeting.”
To that end, Lazzeri is looking forward to some long-overdue quality time with his family. He plans to travel, spend time with his wife, children and grandchildren, and work on home improvements. What he doesn’t plan to do is go back to work.
“You won’t see me taking a short-term superintendency or getting another job,” he said. “I’m all about Boardman. I’m forever a Spartan. And I can’t see being anywhere else.”
He never has been anywhere else.
Lazzeri, a western Pennsylvania native, moved to Boardman to follow his wife, who got a job here after the two graduated from college.
He started out as a librarian at Glenwood Middle School in 1972. He also coached track and basketball there for a number of years. In the early 1980s, he moved to the high school, where he worked as a media specialist.
During that time, he oversaw the school district’s implementation of technology in classrooms. He was responsible for installing computer labs in every school in the district.
In 1996, his career took a different turn when he was promoted to a principal position at Market Street Elementary School. He worked there until 2004, when he became district superintendent.
“I never aspired to be a principal. I never aspired to be a superintendent. But through the years I had some great mentors,” Lazzeri said.
While reluctant to take credit for any successes – he insists that “any accomplishments I may have had are not because of me” – what he’s most proud of are the impressions he left on students over the years.
Reflecting on “the little things,” he gets choked up.
“I’ve had former students come back to me,” he said. “They’ll say, ‘You might not know it, but back when I had you as a principal, a librarian, a coach, it meant so much to me when ...’”
It’s a sentiment that he comes back to again and again: the importance of people, above all else. People who have helped him. People for whom he’s made a difference. And the importance of teaching students not just classroom curriculum, but how to be good people.
“It’s not all about report cards. You want to turn out kids that will be contributing members of society. Kids that will be future leaders. Kids that will be your teachers, your doctors, your architects, your business owners,” he said.
That goal was not without its challenges. He noted the rise in technology, and especially of drug use, as challenges the district has faced under his leadership.
“One of the most-tragic things to happen in this district was the year we lost three kids to drugs or drug-related incidents,” he said, referring to a 2013 string of deaths of recent Boardman graduates.
“That was hard,” he said softly, struggling to remain composed.
Those deaths prompted Lazzeri and his team to come up an anti-drug initiative that included implementation of a drug-testing policy; “Yes Fest,” an annual event that encourages kids to embrace positive behaviors; and more drug-related education in classrooms.
“I think in a small way we have helped kids make better decisions,” Lazzeri said.
He expressed his gratitude to the Boardman community “for putting up with me for 44 years.”
“When you have the children of the children you once taught, it’s time to get out,” he joked.
While on his way out, he was hard at work even on his last day in the office.
“I’ve always had a strong work ethic,” he said. “I never saw my parents rest, and they imprinted that on me. I never wanted to be accused of not doing my job, or resting on my laurels, so I’ve been working up until the end.”