Friends of Vocational Technical & Agricultural Education,
A wonderful article in today’s “Lowell Sun”.
David
Shawsheen Tech Superintendent-Director Charles Lyons shakes hands with Class of 2015 valedictorian Raine Ferrin, of Tewksbury, after her address at the June 4, 2015 graduation ceremony, Lyons’ last before his retirement.
Oct. 8—BILLERICA — He spent 28 years as the superintendent of Shawsheen Valley Technical High School, and before that served as the first-ever 18-year-old to be elected to local office in the state. After his passing late last month following a battle with glioblastoma, family, friends, and colleagues reflected on the life and legacy of Charlie Lyons.
Lyons spent most of his adult life serving in local offices, first being elected to the Arlington School Committee in 1972, and then moving to serve on the town’s Select Board for 24 years until 2005. For much of that period, he simultaneously served as the Shawsheen Tech superintendent until his retirement in 2015.
Those who knew Lyons knew him most for his staunch support for vocational education, and his advocacy for students most of all.
Charlie Lyons’ widow, Leanne Lyons, of course knew him the best out of anybody. The couple had been together for 15 years, of which they were married for 12, and Leanne Lyons thought of her late husband’s passion for family, vocational education and the communities he was a part of as "an inspiration."
Retired Superintendent Charles Lyons stands next to the newly revealed monument in honor of him and thanks those who helped him make Shawsheen Tech’s new athletic complex possible, on Nov. 24, 2016.
"It’s nice that he was able to enjoy a lot of his accomplishments, too," said Leanne Lyons. "He got to see the results of a lot of his hard work."
Vocational education is what brought the two together, Leanne Lyons said, as they met while he was in his role as superintendent while she was teaching at Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School in Haverhill.
"Charlie and I shared a wonderful life together. I miss him and will treasure the memories of our time together forever," said Leanne Lyons. "He was bigger than life. This happened too quick."
Current Shawsheen Tech Superintendent Tony McIntosh first met Charlie Lyons nearly a decade ago, when Lyons had been doing a presentation on regional school finance.
"When I first got hired as superintendent here, he made sure to reach out to me. He was just a great mentor," said McIntosh, who became superintendent in 2022. "To this day he was still all about making sure people who are in charge of schools like this had the knowledge, understanding and background to be successful in getting funding for programs and the students."
Leanne Lyons, left, smiles up at her husband, retired Superintendent Charles Lyons, who just received a monument dedicated to him and the new athletic field that he made possible for Shawsheen Tech, on Nov. 24, 2016.
Charlie Lyons was "all about the students," McIntosh said, and they were the driving motivation for Lyons throughout his long career.
"Anything he did through his career and after his retirement was always focused on helping students to succeed," said McIntosh.
Shawsheen Tech Athletic Director Al Costabile knew Charlie Lyons well and said in a phone call the day after Lyons’ wake that a large number of people came to show their respects.
"It was staggering how many people were there, and how long it took," said Costabile.
The two first met when Costabile sought a position as both a social studies teacher and head football coach at Shawsheen Tech in 1997, and they worked together until Lyons’ retirement.
"He had a unique style of leadership that was very effective. It fit him," said Costabile. "He was a people’s person. He was always very visible, and he had a big personality. He always enjoyed a smile, enjoyed a joke and enjoyed a laugh."
Shawsheen Tech Superintendent Charlie Lyons, center, holds a bouquet of flowers during the ribbon cutting for the school’s new life sciences wing on Sept. 20, 2011. At left is Katherine Craven, founding executive director of the Massachusetts School Building Authority, and at right is State Treasurer Steve Grossman.
Most importantly for the position though, Costabile said Lyons was always able to think quickly on his feet.
"He really had a knack for sizing up the situation and knowing what it was going to take to solve it," said Costabile.
Kevin Bloom, who Lyons hired as an English teacher for Shawsheen in 1998, said it quickly became apparent that Lyons was one of the best in the business.
"I knew very little about vocational schools back then, but it didn’t take me very long to realize that Charlie Lyons was one of the most influential people not only in the state, but in the country when it came to voc-tech education," said Bloom in a Sept. 28 email. "He transformed Shawsheen into one of the best vocational-technical schools in the country. His involvement with the National League of Cities (including serving as its President), provided a national backdrop to the role as the leader of Shawsheen."
Bloom recalled a moment in the 2000s when he was coaching the Shawsheen varsity baseball team at Worcester State University in the State Vocational Tournament finals.
"In the second inning I looked behind the backstop, and there was Charlie rooting on his beloved Rams," said Bloom. "Here it is June, one of the busiest months of the year for a school superintendent, and he took the long ride out to Worcester because he knew it was important for his students and their families to know that he supported them one hundred percent of the time."
Shawsheen Tech Superintendent Charlie Lyons, at his office on Sept. 23, 2015, during his last week of work before retirement.
Steven Sharek, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of Vocational Administrators, for which Lyons served on the board of directors, said Lyons was "giant in vocational-technical education in Massachusetts."
"As a superintendent, he built Shawsheen Tech into a powerhouse. As a vocational leader, he helped build our statewide system into one that is the envy of the nation," said Sharek. "To us, Charlie Lyons is already a legend. It was a real gift to be able to witness him in action: his keen mind, his razor-sharp oratory, his passion. He made a mark on everything he touched. He will be sorely missed."
At the beginning of their Sept. 26 School Committee meeting the evening after Lyons passed away, Burlington Public Schools Superintendent Eric Conti said Lyons was someone who was always generous with his time and was always willing to answer his questions.
"Charlie was a presence if you’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting with him," said Conti. "He was a legend in my business, and he will be sorely missed. He was a strong advocate for children and education in Massachusetts."
