
“It Takes a Village: A Moment with Dr. Tracy Lorey”
Greater Consolidated Schools Board President Greg Eckerle opened the meeting with a story about Dr.
Lorey accompanying a student home who was too afraid to ride the bus by themselves. It was a
testament to the calm, even-handed, well-prepared, and thoroughly caring leadership that Dr. Lorey
has provided during her tenure. Eckerle then continued on to say about the outgoing superintendent,
“There’s never been an issue she couldn’t handle. I think back to Covid and how she led the charge
countywide for that. Every issue that comes up, she knows what to do. She’s never at a loss for words
when a tough question comes up. She’s able to handle it, she doesn’t get flustered, she’s never left
flat-footed. It’s been a real joy to work with her.”
With many of her grandchildren and children on hand, Dr. Lorey was business as usual until the final
ninety seconds of the meeting, when she addressed the board for the final time and allowed the
weight of her thirty-two years of service to Jasper Consolidated Schools to show through. “It has been
my honor and privilege to serve as an educator with the Greater Jasper Consolidated Schools for the
last thirty-two years. I thank you for your confidence, trust, and support that you have shown through
so many good times and also some pretty challenging moments. But together I think we have
accomplished so many great things. And I will hold this chapter of my life near and dear to my heart for
the remainder of my years, and take the many lessons learned into the next chapter. And I just thank
you, everyone.”
Afterward, she was kind enough to sit down with WITZ and talk with us about what she plans to take
with her in her new position at the Indiana State Department of Education. “I’m excited about the
opportunity to be able to serve the students of Indiana and the educators of Indiana, and support Dr.
Jenner’s vision and Governor Braun’s vision for what education should look like in the state of Indiana.
My goal will be to try to fulfill that mission to the best of my ability.”
Mary Roberson, who will be taking over as interim superintendent until a permanent candidate can be
named, added, “Tracy and I go way back, and I’ve long admired her tenacity, her leadership, and like
Greg pointed out, her genuine, caring spirit.” The two are in lock step as they try to create a smooth
transition for GJCS.
It’s a philosophy that Dr. Lorey says translates well as long as you put the students at the center. “We
have an obligation to provide them with every possible resource that we can to assure that they can
learn and find success when they leave us. So, that old adage, it takes a village. It does take a village.
And so that whole idea of trying to provide all of the resources that we could, whether it was time of
individuals, or the talent of the individuals that are employed to work with our kids. And even the
treasurer, the cost of that, the ability to provide all of those things effectively, hopefully insures that
our kids get that success when they walk across the stage and they grab that diploma.”
And what will she miss most about her time in a more intimate setting? “The best days were always
when kids were involved. The farther you move through leadership roles, the farther away you get
from kids and the reason why we do what we do. And so I think the thing that I will miss the most is
just the pride that you take seeing a kid learn something and get it. The pride that we take when our
kids put themselves out there and compete and succeed. First and foremost, I’ll miss the kids.” It’s a
part of the progression she knows is necessary in order to serve more Hoosier students.”
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- By Drew Hasselbring