The principal who has led Harpswell Community School through recent challenges — including a pandemic — plans to retire at the end of the school year.
Anita Hopkins has been the top administrator at Harpswell’s only remaining public school since 2018. Her last day will be June 30. She previously served as principal of two schools in Skowhegan-based Maine School Administrative District 54.
MSAD 75 — covering Harpswell, Topsham, Bowdoin and Bowdoinham — announced Hopkins’ upcoming retirement during a school board meeting on Thursday, Jan. 22.
The board released a timeline for choosing her successor and appointed board member Frank Wright, of Harpswell, to serve on the interview committee. The committee will be led by MSAD 75 Assistant Superintendent Amanda Hersey and will include several teachers and staff members.
According to the timeline, the 10-member committee will accept applications through Feb. 13 and conduct interviews in March. The committee plans to submit its top candidate for school board approval on March 26.
In an email, Hopkins said Harpswell Community School is the kind of small, close-knit school she always hoped to lead. She said strong relationships and a caring staff, along with support from the broader community, have made her proud to work at the school, which serves prekindergarten through grade five.
“I will forever value the relationships I’ve built with students, staff, families, and fellow administrators,” she said. “Our staff shows up every day in ways that go far beyond their job descriptions; caring is at the heart of everything they do.”
Hopkins said schools have changed alongside society, with students facing more anxiety and emotional challenges, often linked to early exposure to social media. She said school staff have strengthened their focus on social-emotional learning, behavioral supports and inclusive practices to better support kids’ needs.
She said one of the biggest challenges during her tenure has been meeting students’ social, emotional and mental health needs while responding to other increased demands on schools.
“Schools are a reflection of society, and we’re often asked to respond to issues that extend well beyond academics, with limited time and resources,” Hopkins said. “Navigating those realities while keeping all students, staff, and families feeling supported can be complex.”
She credited the school’s “amazing educators” for handling their increased responsibilities “extraordinarily well.”
Hopkins said she will miss the people and the daily moments of joy and growth that come from working together to benefit students. She will also miss the shared sense of purpose in schools, but said that after 40 years in education, it is time to “pass the baton.”
In retirement, Hopkins said she looks forward to fewer commutes from her home in Augusta and having more freedom in her schedule.
“I’m looking forward to traveling with my husband, and to reading the stacks and stacks of books that I don’t have time for right now,” she said. “And more sleep — I’m looking forward to that!”
