THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, June 2, 1995 TAG: 9506020535
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ELIZABETH THIEL, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: Medium: 62 lines
School and city officials bid a fond farewell Thursday night to a man they said has shepherded the school system through 15 years of growth and change.
Superintendent C. Fred Bateman will retire from the school system in July, and will become a professor at Old Dominion University. The author of two books also will continue to write and spend time with his first grandchild; a second is on the way.
More than 325 well-wishers, including Bateman's wife, his son from Kansas and his daughter from Blacksburg attended the going-away banquet at Deep Creek High.
Many bore gifts and plaques thanking Bateman for his service. Del. J. Randy Forbes, R-Chesapeake, read a letter from Gov. George F. Allen, calling Bateman a beacon of excellence ``in an age of mediocrity.''
All praised his leadership, which has been characterized by calm, deliberate decision-making and an avoidance of radical change.
The Chesapeake school system has been a hallmark of stability, while some local districts have been plagued by controversy and leadership changes.
Two other Hampton Roads cities will lose their superintendents this year, and another is in question. Virginia Beach's Sidney L. Faucette will leave to take a job in Georgia, while Suffolk's Beverly B. Cox III will retire. Portsmouth's Richard D. Trumble is a finalist for a job in Louisiana.
Bateman Thursday attributed the lack of turmoil in Chesapeake to city residents who value education and do not vilify the superintendent.
``An investment in the public schools is an investment in the quality of the city,'' Bateman said. ``And the people in Chesapeake know that. I don't have to go out and tell them.''
Other officials, however, gave much of the credit to Bateman.
``Fred was able to get things done in this city that no other superintendent has been able to do,'' said former Chesapeake Mayor Sidney M. Oman.
Bateman is credited with leading the city through a period of incredible growth, during which he had to work with City Council to find the money to build schools and start new programs. The school system had fewer than 24,000 students in 1980; now there are more than 33,000.
Shirley H. Forbes, former president of the city PTA Council, remembered when she was just starting with the PTA 11 years ago. At one of her first meetings, Bateman made a point of seeking her out and welcoming her to the group. Forbes said that was typical of Bateman's constant efforts to be a ``bridge builder.''
``That gave me so much motivation,'' she said. ``It enabled me to get across that little fearful water'' as a newcomer to the group.
``Whatever we do will fall short of recognizing the magnitude and the breadth of your accomplishments,'' said School Board Chairman Maury Brickhouse.
Bateman said he has mixed emotions about leaving.
``On the one hand, I have a unique professional opportunity to do something that has always been at the end of my professional rainbow,'' he said. ``On the other hand, we shall miss so many people.''
KEYWORDS: CHESAPEAKE SCHOOLS SUPERINTENDENT by CNB