Bill LeRoy got into education so he could work with students. He’s getting back into the classroom because he missed that interaction.
LeRoy will resign as athletic director at Deering High, a post he has held since July 1, 2008, to become a health teacher at Portland High, as of Sept. 1.
He will continue as athletic director for the Rams, he said, “until they name a replacement.”
Applications closed on Friday.
LeRoy, 53, has been involved in athletics his entire life. But he wanted to get back into the classroom to teach.
“The last few months have really kind of driven home the desire to get back into the classroom and have more contact with the kids than I had as athletic director,” he said. “I enjoyed my short tenure in that position.
But as I reflected on what it was that I really enjoyed doing, getting back to the day-to-day contact and relationships with the kids is something that I’ve really missed.
“This opportunity presented itself. And it seemed the right time to do it.”
While at Deering, LeRoy saw the Rams contend for state championships in several sports, and brought in several coaches to replace some prominent names (Greg Stilphen in football and Mike D’Andrea in girls’ basketball and baseball).
“I feel very good about the staff that the new AD will inherit,” he said. “They’re all professional, they all care about the kids.”
LeRoy grew up in Burlington, Mass., and played football at the University of Maine. After several years of college coaching, he came to Deering High in 1986.
He has been at Deering ever since except for a three-year stint as Cheverus’ head football coach.
He sees himself returning to athletics at some point.
“I’m not walking away permanently,” he said. “I’ll get back involved in coaching at some point, not just yet. I have a daughter in college (Jamie, a sophomore at Boston University, who is on the women’s crew team). I want to get to her events in the fall and spring.
“We’ll see what happens in a few months, or a year from now.”
Staff Writer Mike Lowe can be contacted at 791-6422 or at: mlowe@pressherald.com
Twitter: MikeLowePPH
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