Superintendent Laura Hammack was finally awarded an Eagle pin during her final meeting with the school board last week.
“I have always wanted one,” Hammack said with a smile after being presented with the pin by board member Stephanie Kritzer.
The Eagle pin is the highest award the school board gives to students and staff.
“We appreciate you and everything you’ve done. We will miss you,” Kritzer said.
Hammack’s last day with the school district is May 28, the same day as Brown County High School commencement. Interim superintendent Jim Halik will start on June 2. He will leave once a new superintendent is picked, which should be around Aug. 2.
Hammack is returning to Beech Grove City Schools in June, the district she left to become Brown County Schools superintendent in 2016.
Board President Carol Bowden spoke about Hammack’s time with the district, which began in Brown County as a special education teacher at the former Nashville Elementary School.
The two met at the Brown County 4-H Fair when Hammack was at the school district’s table. She told Bowden if she was interested in serving on the school board, she should sign up to run.
“It was a moment ago and forever. I had all kinds of interactions with you all through those years. I am so glad that we had the opportunity to interview you for the superintendent job and it really worked out so well,” Bowden said.
Hammack became Brown County Schools superintendent after David Shaffer’s retirement in 2016. She had served as assistant superintendent for Beech Grove Schools since July 2009. Bowden was on the board when they interviewed Hammack for the job.
Hammack was assistant superintendent under Shaffer from July 2007 to July 2009. Before that, she taught special education and sixth grade at Nashville Elementary before becoming principal of Helmsburg Elementary.
“I weep with joy in the knowing of Dr. Laura Hammack through the years from Nashville Elementary when she was Miss Laura Allport. I share in the joy when she became the assistant superintendent during the summer of 2007 and I came onto the board in September 2007,” Bowden said.
“I wept with sadness when she left and with joy when she came back with the additional experience and knowledge, which helped get our school corporation financially in the black and able to support the world class experience and education we are doing.”
Bowden credited Hammack with the district never having to issue reduction in force (RIF) notices to teachers and staff despite declining state funding and budget constraints. The district was always in a mode of evaluating jobs when they became open. Sometimes, they would just not fill them to save money, based on recommendations from Hammack and her team, Bowden said.
“I do not weep with sadness that Laura is leaving, because I know that she made that decision for what was best for her and her family. As I always say to my patients, if you do not take care of number one — yourself/family — then you cannot take care of the rest — family and any other people/concerns in your life,” she said.
“I will smile at the last meeting, the last graduation this month for the honor of knowing Laura all of these years with a lot of great memories.”
“I will miss you. Thank you so much. I love you guys,” Hammack told the board.
