Saturday
Jun252011
Art Tate was a super superintendent, great KCOT member
Saturday, June 25, 2011 at 2:01AM
On Thursday, the Kiwanis Club of Tempe bid farewell to Dr. Arthur "Art" Tate Jr., a member of the Club since 2005, the same length of time he has been the Superintendent of Schools for Tempe Elementary School District No. 3.
Art had been a member of a previous Kiwanis club in Hillsboro, Mass., in the 1990s. He told KCOT that it was the most robust service club he had ever been part of.
On July 1, Art becomes the Superintendent of Schools in Davenport, Iowa. He said TD3 amounted to the "longest job he had ever held" in seven decades of life. "I guess I just can't keep a job," he quipped. Art said it had been a privilege to be part of KCOT. For several years, he was captain of the ticket booth sales for the 4th of July Fireworks Show.
Art introduced his successor, Chris Busch, who has 35 years experience in education, including 23 years in TD3. Chris said she had worked under five superintendents in the district, but Art was profoundly professional and was the most visible school chief in the community, devoting 2-3 hours daily simply visiting the district's schools and interacting with teachers, staff and students. During Art's time five schools were rebuilt or replaced, including Thew, Broadmor, Holdeman and Scales, and others like Aguilar, Arredondo and Laird were renovated. The economy and cuts in state funding required tough decisions that led to the shutdown of McKemy Middle School. Meyer Elementary will be closed and students moved to Hudson, while Bustoz is closed and moved into Fuller Elementary. "Art has been a friend to Tempe," she said. Beth Fiorenza tearfully said she was very impressed and moved when Art dropped in at Tempe Community Action Agency offices a half-dozen years ago to introduce himself, and he spent an hour getting to know about TCAA. Beth said it was a transformational moment of her own in her role as TCAA executive director. Ed Baker, editor of the College Times and prospective member, praised Art and his staff for their handling the daunting work of public hearings and decision-making on the school closings. He said his wife does a lot of school volunteering at their children's school, Getz, and they have become friends with teachers.
Chris then gave an overview of her plans and took many questions. She is the daughter-in-law of the late Ed and Udell Busch, longtime owners of Trophy Den. Ed was the 15th president of KCOT (1966). A bequest of $50,000 went to KCOT for scholarships from the Busch estate.
During Happy Dollars on Thursday, Lawn Griffiths called Art forward and said he gladly left Iowa for Arizona in 1984 but that he has recurring bad dreams that he is being pulled, "kicking and screaming," back to live in Iowa. He presented Art with a black winter cap with separate ear muffs to use in Davenport on mornings he helps get school buses started in -20 F weather or out scraping ice from their windshields or beholding the howling wind off the Mississippi River and wondering whether to cancel schools for the day. Thanks to Penny Pease for donating the hat.
Chris Busch received a hearty invitation from Joe Schmoker to continue a tradition of TD3 superintendents being in the Kiwanis Club of Tempe.
Art Tate is a gentleman, and he enriched our membership immensely in his tenure.