LONGMEADOW – Longtime School Committee member John Fitzgerald recently announced that he would not run for reelection in June.

Fitzgerald has served on the committee for 9 years for a total of three three-year terms.

Fitzgerald, a retired Longmeadow High School history teacher who taught at the school from 1971 to 2004, told Reminder Publications he believes Longmeadow has an excellent school system and there was “always something pulling back” to get him involved in education in the community.

“I think I did my share of public service – I’m glad I did it,” Fitzgerald said. “Actually, I did thoroughly enjoy it; playing a significant role in the community and the education of young people.”

Looking back on the past nine years, Fitzgerald said helping to facilitate the development and construction of the new high school was a highlight.

“Our new, state-of-the-art, high school building is a monument to the value that we, as Longmeadow citizens, place on education,” he stated in a letter to the School Committee and Superintendent of Schools M. Martin O’Shea announcing that he would not seek reelection. “The work of the School Committee over the years has helped to create a school system that is far superior to what I joined when I first came to work in the Longmeadow Public Schools in 1971. In the year 2017, Longmeadow Public Schools rank among the top school systems in the Commonwealth. We are in the top ranks nationally as well.”

Fitzgerald said Longmeadow Public Schools places more emphasis on discussion based classes and hands-on laboratory exercises since he began teaching in the 1970s.

“Critical thinking became a skill set that people wanted to emphasize,” he explained.

Fitzgerald served in the Vietnam War in the 21st Infantry Division of the United States Army in C? Chi district in Vietnam before becoming a teacher.

“I joined the anti-war movement as a result of what I saw over there,” he explained. “It was clear to me that we weren’t on the side of the people. The tax collector would come out when we were moving through an area; otherwise there was no services whatsoever rendered to the people.”

He said his experience in the Vietnam War led to his decision to study American history.

“I responded to an advertisement for a job with the Longmeadow Public Schools,” he added. “I knew I wanted to get into teaching and I thought, ‘Well, I’ll start with high school and see where it goes.’ And then I got pulled into the high school world. I found that I enjoyed teaching.”

Fitzgerald said he taught world history, ancient civilizations, U.S. history, philosophy, government, and mass media as a high school teacher.

He said one of the most rewarding aspects of his decades as a teacher has been keeping in touch with former students who have now become adults.

“I’ve had parents stop me in the supermarket … And say, ‘I want to thank you for what you’ve done for my son or my daughter,’” Fitzgerald said. “And of course, I stay in touch with a number of former students. That’s one of the tangible rewards of teaching.”