FCPS community bids farewell to former Superintendent Jack Dale

Jack Dale at the retirement celebration with a caricature and his official portrait.

Hundreds of school administrators, county officials, and education advocates bid farewell to former Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Jack Dale at a retirement celebration Aug. 1 at the Mason Inn.

School board chair Ilryong Moon (at-large) and Deputy Division Superintendent Richard Moniuszko moderated the event, which included tributes from Fairfax County Board of Supervisors Chair Sharon Bulova and Fairfax County Economic Development Authority President Gerald Gordon.

The speakers outlined Dale’s accomplishments, including rising levels of academic achievement, decreased achievement gaps, expansion of all-kindergarten, and an increased emphasis on global education.

On July 1, Karen Garza, an education leader from Texas, took over as FCPS superintendent.

Dale had been scheduled to retire on June 30, but suffered a critical medical emergency—a ruptured aorta—on May 7. During the retirement celebration, Dale said he is now 85 percent recovered from what he called a “little heart episode” and credited the physicians at Inova Hospital for saving his life. He hasn’t announced any plans for his retirement, other than a trip to Spain and Portugal this fall pending approval from his doctors. 

Dale thanked his wife, Val, and his family, many of whom were in the audience, along with the PTA and the FCPS staff for their support during his nine years as superintendent. The event closed with a song performed by students in the FCPS Institute for the Arts Chorus: “Hit the Road, Jack.”