Bill Franke, the former Miami Trace Local Schools business manager, retired recently after over 30 years of service to the district and will move on to Newark City Schools.
“Working with the district for over 30 years was an honor of a lifetime,” Franke said. “Wonderful community, great people….that is why I stayed my entire first career so to speak. I left with mixed emotions, but was presented with an opportunity at Newark City Schools that really speaks to my passion for building and creating. I also certainly enjoyed my time working with (former Miami Trace Superintendent and current Newark City Schools Superintendent) David Lewis. Obviously nothing against (Miami Trace Superintendent) Mrs. Kim Pittser, she is a great person, but knowing that Mr. Lewis was out here really helped to sway me because I knew who I was going to be working for and that kind of sealed the deal. I have been so honored with the trust the Fayette County community put in me to oversee all of our construction projects and creation of that beautiful campus. Hopefully they will be able to benefit from that for many years to come.”
According to Pittser, Franke made his intent to retire known in June and the retirement was officially accepted by the Miami Trace Board of Education on July 5. His final day with the district was July 23.
“We wholeheartedly thank Bill for the job he did here at Miami Trace,” Pittser said this week. “He provided leadership and guidance for the MT Team on a variety of aspects including each ‘piece to the puzzle.’ The elementary school project finished in 2008, the middle school project finished in 2011, the high school project finished 2019, and amongst these buildings were also the transportation department building and the central office.”
Franke explained that he would be embarking on a retire-rehire situation with Newark City Schools where he was recently hired on a three-year contract as a facility manager by their board of education. His employment with the Newark City Schools district was effective Aug. 1 and Pittser said there is no plan at this time to replace Franke’s position.
“We remain extremely grateful for the time, energy, and dedication he gave to this central campus,” Pittser said. “In addition to numerous building projects, Mr. Franke oversaw our classified staff, facility maintenance, and a variety of district operations. At this time, these have been transferred to other personnel. Our administrative team and central office administrative assistants continue to transition our roles.”
With the retirement of Franke, the district has experienced much change this summer within the areas of food service, curriculum, maintenance and the learning center.
“Mr. Franke was a dedicated employee for over 30 years,” Miami Trace Board of Education President Dave Miller said. “He was instrumental in the centralized campus completion. He did a wonderful job during his time here and we wish him well in his new endeavor.”
This year, Deanna Park will take over food service, Ann Boerger will serve as secondary curriculum director, and Sunny Cummings will take over as the new elementary school assistant principal. Additionally, Nicole Fatica-Mavis transitioned from assistant principal to elementary curriculum director; Zach Coe transitioned from maintenance team member to maintenance supervisor; and Casey Enochs will now serve as the Miami Trace Learning Center Director and continue to do work as a special education director.
“We continue to embrace these opportunities to build our team and acquire the most effective ways to serve our staff and students,” Pittser said.
Reach Martin Graham at (740) 313-0351.
