Pr. William Schools Lose Pillar

Longtime Administrator Is Set to Retire After A Quietly Effective Career

Pamela Gauch never wanted to be the Prince William County school superintendent. And in her nearly 25 years as a local educator, she has never really needed the prominent title to deftly steer the school system into the high-stakes testing era.

Late last month, Gauch, 63, the longtime associate superintendent for student learning and accountability announced her retirement by the end of the year to spend more time with her family, some local and others scattered in California and her native state of Minnesota. She said she is also leaving because her several years of teaching elsewhere can be counted toward reaching 30 years of experience, the necessary amount to tap into the state's retirement fund.

For the past 12 years, Gauch has been in charge of a vast and critical part of the school system, helping shape curriculum and professional development of teachers. To parents, she might not be as visible as Superintendent Steven L. Walts, but within the school system, Gauch is viewed as a kind of guru, regarded widely for her rigorous embrace of research-based initiatives and advocacy of teachers.

This year, she and other staff members emerged in an unusually large public role, constantly coming to the school system's defense of the controversial Investigations math program. That curriculum, which de-emphasizes memorization of formulas in favor of more thought-out solutions, triggered the formation of a persistent and vocal parent opposition group.

Gauch faced heat from those parents and some teachers who think she and the staff have put the elementary math curriculum on the wrong path. Gauch, however, has cited a considerable amount of data to support the program, which has the backing of the School Board.

"Investigations will pay off," Gauch said, adding that she will be restless in her retirement, awaiting next year's test scores. "I am going to be watching very closely to make sure the scores are good. I am going to be just as anxious."

Gauch graduated from Brigham Young University in 1968 with bachelor's degrees in English and French. (She also has a master's degree in administration and supervision from George Mason University.)

She spent six years working in California, teaching those languages, along with home economics, in an upscale neighborhood undergoing rapid socioeconomic integration.

Then Gauch was struck by a bit of wanderlust and ended up applying for a teaching stint abroad under the aegis of the Department of Defense. She wanted to be placed in Denmark or Germany but was assigned to Japan. She was initially nonplused, but she carried on.

"I was able to go from Okinawa to a military base outside Tokyo. I traveled to Singapore and Vietnam. We were one of the first teaching groups to go to Saigon," she said. "Seeing all the diversity really helped, and looking at what kids there didn't have that we did have was important. You feel grateful."

She married a fighter pilot, and they moved to Prince William, where he was assigned to Marine Corps Base Quantico in 1982. She applied for a Prince William teaching job, but, she said, the school system wasn't hiring because of low enrollment. So she spent two years working at the FBI Academy, editing its periodic bulletin and ensuring its classes were accredited.

In 1984, she was hired at Woodbridge Middle School, where she taught French and English.