Press release from Henderson County Public Schools:
Retiring Superintendent Bo Caldwell was honored for his 36 years of service to Henderson County Public Schools (HCPS) with the North Carolina governor’s Order of the Long Leaf Pine, and a challenge coin presented by the Henderson County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) school resource officers division.
Caldwell was nominated by his peers at HCPS for the Order of the Long Leaf Pine, one of the highest honors granted by the governor of North Carolina, and on Thursday during Caldwell’s retirement celebration, former North Carolina Rep. Chuck McGrady presented Caldwell with the award on behalf of Gov. Roy Cooper.
The award is bestowed upon individuals who have displayed exemplary service to their North Carolina communities and to the state as a whole, and Caldwell was nominated for his dedication to public education, his regional and statewide advocacy for educators and students in Henderson County, and his humble service to the community.
Caldwell was also honored by the HCSO as one of the first civilian recipients of the department’s SRO challenge coin. Maj. Frank Stout explained the challenge coin was designed by the SRO division to recognize individuals who’ve demonstrated outstanding support of school safety and the HCSO program.
Stout explained that during a time when the nation was seeing a rise in school violence, Caldwell was proactive in bridging the gap between SROs and school administrators. “He opened the lines of communication between law enforcement and the school system that we’d never seen before,” Stout said.
When presenting the coin to Caldwell on Thursday, SRO Division Supervisor Lt. Jesse Blankenship said, “(Caldwell) opened up that door to sit down and have meetings with all the SROs,” recognizing that their different perspectives would ultimately improve school safety. “We appreciated the willingness on his part to sit down and have some very tough conversations,” Blankenship said.
During his retirement celebration, Caldwell was also honored for his strong partnership with the county by Henderson County Manager Steve Wyatt, county commissioners, and Henderson County Emergency Services Director Jimmy Brissie. Caldwell’s last day with HCPS is Monday, November 30.
Before you comment
The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.