DiMaria served Lawrence for seven years
Lea Kahn
When the doors to Lawrence High School open in September, Assistant Principal Evelyn DiMaria will not be on hand to welcome the students.
Mrs. DiMaria is retiring as one of the two assistant principals, effective Sept. 1. Her retirement follows on the heels of Lawrence High School Principal Anthony Watson’s retirement announcement Tuesday.
Mrs. DiMaria came to Lawrence High School as the assistant principal seven years ago, after a stint as the director of pupil personnel services in the Washington Township, Gloucester County school system.
The veteran educator began her career in education 34 years ago as a Spanish teacher at Burlington Township High School. She also served as a guidance counselor at Cumberland Regional High School.
“I have been thinking about retirement. It’s just been a wonderful career,” she said. “I have loved working with teenagers, but I have a personal need to make a change in my life. I am young enough to do something a little different.”
“Something different” may be working as a guidance counselor in a school operated by the U.S. Department of Defense on a military base overseas. Mrs. DiMaria said her application for such a position is being considered by the military.
Mrs. DiMaria speaks both Spanish and Italian, and she loves Europe. Her two grown children like the idea of her working in a school on an American military base in Europe, and they have been very supportive, she said.
She is considering other options, such as working in the parochial schools as a guidance counselor. And a move to Florida is not out of the picture for Mrs. DiMaria, where she might look for work as a guidance counselor, also.
“I think I communicate well with students,” she said, explaining her interest in working as a guidance counselor. “Or, I could end up working in a book store. It’s wonderful to have options.”
Mrs. DiMaria said she will miss the students, who have been an “energy source” to her. But it is better to leave while she still likes what she is doing — before it becomes tiresome, she said.
“The lack of predictability of the students makes the job more exciting. I like their honesty,” she said. “This is the most honest time of their lives. Adolescents let you know what they are thinking. Teens are very accepting. If you can be honest back with them, you can deal with them.”
The Lawrence Township public schools have been very good to her, she said. She has made some “wonderful connections” with the students and their parents, and she said she appreciates them all.