By MATT LAMB
Staff Writer
Following a recent contract extension approved by the Board of Education, Moore County’s homegrown superintendent, Tim Locklair, has been tapped to serve four more years at the helm of the school district.
Two years ago, after a brief stint as the district’s interim leader, friends, family, district employees and local officials filled Pinecrest High School’s auxiliary gym for Locklair’s naming as superintendent and swearing-in.
The location was fitting; Locklair, a Seven Lakes West resident, graduated from Pinecrest, started his teaching career there, and, in 1999, became the school’s assistant principal.
He went on to spend 12 years as an administrator in Wake County before returning to Moore County in 2016 to serve as the district’s first executive officer for academics and student support services.
Locklair recently sat down with The Pilot to discuss his contract extension, achievements across the district the past two years, ongoing challenges and a forthcoming school board election that could turn over four of the seven seats.
As a Moore County native, Locklair described the honor of taking the top job in the district.
“It was very special to be the interim superintendent — to be asked to lead the district during the transition — but there was no doubt that I was interested in the position,” he explained. “It took a while for that to sink in, that I am now the superintendent of the school district where I attended, where I graduated, where I started my career as a teacher and a coach.
“This is a special place, and it has meant a lot to serve in this role, and it continues to mean a lot for me to be able to continue to serve.”
Locklair didn’t glide into an easy educational environment when he took the interim superintendent position. Moore County was on the leading edge of an effort to bounce back from COVID.
“Moore County Schools was really on the forefront of getting students back in-person in class,” he said. “We were one of the top districts doing that and being as aggressive as the law would allow us and what safety would allow us to do. We tried to be as safe as we could, but we also tried to be aggressive in getting our kids back in person.
“At that point, we were continuing to monitor how COVID was affecting us from a health and safety standpoint but also putting all our strategies together to help our students recover — planning summer learning, things of that nature to help our kids catch up and get them back on track.”
The effects of COVID-19 learning loss still linger across the state. A North Carolina Department of Public Instruction (NCDPI) analysis indicates that learning slowed across all grades and all subjects.
However, “Students who returned to the classroom for face-to-face learning and where specific and targeted resources and supports were immediately put in place, did better than the students whose instruction was purely remote and who were physically disengaged from their school community,” NCDPI’s study reads.
All considered, Locklair said that Moore County Schools has done well coping with the pandemic, a testament he attributes to his staff.
“When you look at the state level data, our recovery on state tests are above where the state is, so it shows that our teachers are doing incredible work on behalf of our kids and helping them catch up.”
Analyzing neighboring districts, Locklair said Moore County Schools outperforms most.
“When you look at the last two years, we are the top performing school district in the region, and we are one of the top performing school districts in the state, and we are very proud of that.”
Among individual program areas, Locklair paid specific attention to the district’s Career and Technical Education (CTE) efforts. Moore County Schools is in the top ten in the state for credential and certificate attainment.
Among achievements, Locklair said he has a lot to be grateful for.
“The last North Carolina teacher work conditions survey, 94.1 percent of our teachers said their schools are a good place to work and learn,” he said. “It really all goes back to our people and our teachers and our staff, and the work that they are doing each and every day, which is why it’s special and an honor to be their superintendent and to work alongside them.”
In addition to strong academic outcomes and interpersonal relationships with district staff, Locklair described a valuable relationship with key county personnel.
“Some things that we have been able to accomplish, having great relationships with folks from around the county, whether that be our Board of Commissioners, working through the last three budget cycles with increases in our budget and now the funding formula, which has been a real positive result.”
The funding formula allocates 38.5 percent of the county’s budgeted sales and property tax directly to the school district.
Locklair added, “I’m grateful for the relationship I have with the county manager, Wayne Vest; I think that’s a highlight, and the partnership you see today, on the horizon looking forward toward the early college here at Sandhills with Dr. (Sandy) Stewart and their team, and also with the University of North Carolina at Pembroke, those are the highlights that I think about.”
Time and again, Locklair has said he is “pro-school choice,” but he feels that Moore County Schools, with its wide range of offerings, is that best choice.
“We off that traditional public school option better than anyone else can. I think the fact that we are also offering a fully virtual option with our Connect Academy and the BlendEd program, where we partner with our homeschool families to experience class here in Moore County Schools for about 50 percent of the time, and then they are able to go back and experience homeschool for the other 50 percent, those choices are something that I am proud of, and I am proud that we are going to be expanding that with our early college at Sandhills.”
Institutional educational success, though, does not come without challenges. Getting the best teachers into the county and keeping them in it continues to pose a challenge for the district.
“I think recruitment and retention of great people is a challenge, and it remains a challenge,” he said. “I think that we are thinking creatively and doing some things differently, but I think it will remain a challenge.
Having a great teacher in every classroom across our school district who is highly qualified is the silver bullet, and so that’s what we continue to work towards.”
Locklair highlighted the importance of all district staff, not just teachers.
“They all have something to do with helping our kids be successful, and so we continue to have vacancies in different areas, and we continue to recruit for all of those, like school police, school bus drivers, maintenance technicians, our cafeteria workers; no matter what their roles, they are important.”
Superintendents across the state are in a unique position. They work by, with and through elected boards of education. Come November, the composition of Moore County’s Board of Education could look considerably different. Having been through one board transition in 2022, Locklair said he is prepared to continue doing the district’s work.
“I’ve been fortunate enough to go through that before, right after I was named superintendent, that following November, we had new members of the board that were elected, and I think what’s critical there, my job is to work with all seven members and the board as a collective group, when they make decisions and their directives and policies, to put those into action.
“But, it’s critical that I work very hard to have an honest relationship with each of the board members, a respectful relationship with each board member, and so when those changes happened, when they happened in November of 2022, it was incumbent on me to reach out to those new board members, get to know them, to understand their desires and hopes for being a board member, and doing great things for the students.
“I certainly foresee doing the same thing this election, with who’s elected or re-elected, and continue that work.”
Locklair’s perspective on a new school board is similar to that of most other issues: it’s all about people.
“It all boils down to relationships and honesty. They may not always agree with my recommendations, but I’m always going to give them my honest recommendations based on the expertise of my team.”
Contact Matt Lamb at (910) 693-2479 or mlamb@thepilot.com
