Q&A With Retiring Principal Lou Gabordi

principal Lou Gabordi has been the principal of this year’s graduating class for five out of their last six years of school and when the school year is over, he’ll step out into the wide-open world with them.

After 37 years as an educator in Ledyard, Ledyard High School principal Louis Gabordi is retiring. Gabordi was named into the Parthenon of “Ledyard Legends” at the by Superintendent of Schools Dr. Michael Graner.

“Lou is such a good friend and has so many attributes,” said Graner in an email. “But if I had to identify one thing that impresses me about Lou it is amazing ability to communicate. He is one of the most articulate persons I have ever met, his humor is unsurpassed and his expressions of humane care for others makes him truly a special man.”

Gabordi said he was honored and humbled by the expressions of appreciation he received at the LEAF dinner and has felt that way for his whole career.

“People have entrusted me with their children and that is a very humbling responsibility that I’ve taken very seriously,” he said in an interview.

But now that the business of educating Ledyard students is coming to a close, Gabordi said he’s looking forward spending time with family, being active and catching up on a few books. Gabordi said James Joyce’s Dubliners and Ulysses are first on the list and quickly followed by contemporary works like the poetry of Coleman Barks.

How many years have you worked in Ledyard schools and which positions did you hold?

I have been an educator in Ledyard for 37 years.  My first 3 were as an English teacher at what was then called Ledyard Junior High.  For the next 25, I was an English teacher at LHS.  During the last of those tears, I was also the Social Studies Department Head.  I then became the LHS Dean of Students for 2 years.  Following that, I was the principal at LMS for 2 years and have been the LHS principal for the last 5.

What degrees do you hold?

I have a BA in English, an MA in Education, and a 6th Year in Administration.

What are some of the biggest changes you have seen while you have been an educator?

To name just a few, I would include special education laws and implementation, increased emphasis on data to inform instruction and curriculum, the focus on literacy instruction at the secondary level, and the revolution in education technology.

What accomplishments are you most proud of?            

Any time I felt I helped increase the likelihood that a student would become a happy and successful adult.

What's one of your favorite stories from your years as an educator?

There are too many to choose.

What do you wish you could have done during your time in Ledyard district? 

I wish I could have increased the comprehensiveness of course offerings at LHS.

What do you want to see students do more and less of?            

I’d love to see students engage more in voluntary pleasure reading and other activities which will result in enriched interior lives. I’d also love to see some of them be less willing to accept rumors at face value. But I must add that I would wish these things for adults, as well.

What are some things you did or tried to teach students at LHS? 

This is too long a list.

What are some lessons you learned from LHS students, staff, and faculty?  This is also too long a list.

If you hadn't been a teacher/administrator, what would you have done?

I probably would have been an unsuccessful writer.

What are your parting words for students, staff and faculty of LHS?

That I have loved working with them for most of my life, and for that I am very grateful.

What would you like the incoming principal to know about LHS students, staff and faculty?

I would just like her not to forget what she already knows. Things will conspire to cause her to do that, but I know she will successfully resist that.

What's next for you?           

I will continue to work in interim or part-time positions in education, if I am fortunate enough to find such opportunities.  I think my dream job would be to work with young teachers as a supervisor and mentor.  But, frankly, I am trying to keep my mind open to other possibilities. Like any graduate, I am starting to realize just how big the world is beyond the walls of LHS.