Harris County superintendent to retire at end of year

Harris County Superintendent Craig Dowling will retire effective Jan. 1, the school board announced Friday.

Dowling, 60, has been the superintendent at Harris County for four and a half years after replacing Susan Andrews, who was the superintendent at Muscogee County until May 2012. He moved to the school district from Rockdale County.

“It has been an honor to serve the Harris County School District as superintendent,” Dowling said in a news release. “I am extremely proud of the school district accomplishments both at the district and school level.”

Dowling announced his intentions to the school board Thursday night.

"We appreciate the contributions he has made to the Harris County School System and wish him well. The board will immediately begin formulating a plan to find a successor," chairperson Karen Hopkins said in the release.

Dowling was hired May 7, 2009, from a pool of 44 applicants. His initial contract was for three years and worth $135,000. It's unclear what he is making now.

Before coming to Harris County, he was the assistant superintendent for Rockdale County Schools near Atlanta for four years, according to a previous Ledger-Enquirer report.

Dowling had served as principal of two schools in Rockdale County, as well as assistant superintendent for instruction for three years. His selection followed a nationwide search conducted by the Georgia School Boards Association on behalf of the Harris board.

Phone calls to the school district's office were not returned Friday afternoon.

This story was originally published September 6, 2013 at 4:29 PM with the headline "Harris County superintendent to retire at end of year."