RONALD R. RIX
WESTFIELD – Westfield Public Schools Chief Financial Officer Ronald R. Rix has announced he will retire July 8 after 40 years in education, the last 24 in Westfield.
The School Committee March 16 approved the job posting for Business Administrator, which Superintendent Stefan Czaporowski said will be listed immediately.
“Mr. Rix has been a tremendous asset to our district as a Building Principal and Chief Financial Officer. He will be missed. At the same time, I wish him the best in his retirement,” Czaporowski said.
Rix began his career as a science and health teacher in Agawam High School from 1980 to 1986, before going on to serve at the state and national levels for 10 years, coordinating programs on substance abuse prevention in schools.
After serving as the interim director of the National Volunteer Training Center for Substance Abuse Prevention under the first President Bush, Rix decided that he wanted to raise his family in his community and came home to Westfield.
“It was very personal. I started my family in D.C. but I was traveling all the time. My son, who was four, once said that his father works at the airport. I wanted to return to a community,” Rix said.
In 1996, Rix became the assistant principal of Westfield Middle School under Principal Dennis Fahey. He then oversaw the creation and construction and became the first principal of North Middle School from 1999 to 2008. In 2004, Rix was honored as the MASS Outstanding Middle School Principal.
Rix said in 2009 he left North Middle School to become principal of South Middle School, “where they needed me.” He assumed leadership of the Title I school, earning more commendations, until he was recruited in 2013 to run the district’s business office by then Superintendent Suzanne Scallion.
“I’m retiring as chief financial officer which gives me a nice sense of accomplishment. It’s nice for me professionally, because I got to do different things and changed jobs every five or six years,” Rix said.
“I’m going to take some time,” Rix said about his post-retirement plans. He’s got a beach house in Maine, where he plans to spend some time. He will also be working as a consultant for CFES Brilliant Pathways, a college and career readiness program.
Rix also teaches skiing at Butternut Ski Resort, where he does a lot of work with adaptive programs for kids with disabilities. He said it’s been a weekend hobby for 20 years. “I’ll get to ski during the week,” he said.
Rix said he’s looking forward to spending time with his wife and visiting his children in California and Philadelphia. He also plans to golf in every state, and ski in every state that has it.
“Thirty-seven states have skiing,” Rix said.
