Dr. Robert Shaps will begin to serve as the Oyster River Cooperative School District superintendent on July 1, 2024.
He’ll become a familiar face for all students before then.
Shaps was officially announced by the ORCSD school board as the new superintendent on December 21, 2023, after spending 13 years in the Mamaroneck school district in New York. There, he discovered why he loves superintendency, building connections with students of all ages, and a genuine zest for being able to advance a school district it’s highest potential.
The way that Shaps described his experiences in his previous years of superintendency brought a smile to his face. He said, “I really see the connection between the learning that happens in the classroom and the outside world. You could describe it as authentic learning, giving students the opportunity to make connections and supply what they’ve learned to outside of the classroom.”
During the New Hampshire primary elections of 2020, he found that connection. Shaps’ former students who were enrolled in AP Government or the journalism program in Mamaroneck travelled to NH to apply their understanding of civics, and created Public Radio blog posts and digital segments about their experiences. “It’s taking the authenticity and making the application of learning come to life is what’s most exciting to me,” said Shaps.
When Shaps retired after this decade well spent, he felt as though it was the right time for him to explore other possibilities, and ultimately begin again. “I have been married for 40 years and my wife had her heart set on returning to New Hampshire. She’s been very supportive of my career, so this was my way of acknowledging that and moving to the seacoast,” said Shaps.
This retirement period has allowed Shaps to spend time with his family, but pursue some individual hobbies he hadn’t been able to. He puts so much of himself into the things he does, which is reflected in the sense of passion he holds while talking about his hobbies. He took up learning Italian during the downtime, and got back into the exercising and active lifestyle. Shaps has competed in triathlons and played lacrosse at the collegiate level.
These interests from his own teenage years never faded from his mind, including the time he built the Souhegan girl’s lacrosse team from a club into a sports team for his daughter to play. He’s equally excited to see how sports and activities affect the ORCSD.
“My plans for the spring are to attend some events here. Musicals, community dinners, spring sports, orchestra concerts, anything like that. Having that opportunity is so advantageous for me to learn and start to understand this place,” said Shaps.
Heather Smith, chair of the search committee, also sees Shaps’ current position as an opportunity for a smooth transition. “We are very fortunate that Dr. Shaps is currently retired. Normally that’s not the case, and someone will finish up an assignment somewhere else… but he’s retired and excited to take on anything here, so I don’t know what his schedule looks like but there’s many things he can do during this transition window before he takes the reigns in July,” Smith said.
Smith, and the rest of the search committee, organized countless rounds of interviews with different representatives. Maeve Hickok’s article “Superintendent Pending” gave an introduction to Shaps and other candidates, and an overview of the search process.
His resume was extensive, although it’s easy to understand why. Shaps collects experiences, and his life accomplishments are no different. He received a degree in English, followed by a Masters in teaching from Harvard, a CAG’s degree from UNH, and his Doctorate in Education from the University of Pennsylvania. “I’ve always been a learner as an adult, and that’s what has been modeling the type of work I do. But, I always had the interest to earn my doctorate, even though I don’t think it’s required,” said Shaps.
After graduating, Shaps began his career path with a teaching position in Londonderry, NH. He then helped start a regional school district in Manchester by the Sea in Essex, MA. Here, Shaps became the principal and later, superintendent. He moved on to Hudson NY, serving as superintendent for 4 years, and finally, superintendent in Mamaroneck, NY for 13 years before retirement.
“Being an educational leader was a primary goal. I enjoyed being a principal because of the idea of getting to be in contact with students each day, but I gravitated towards what I envisioned was really helping the school. “Superintendency is something that made sense for me,” said Shaps.
It’s clear how much Shaps cares about not only the students, but education as a whole. This was also clear to the superintendent search committee, who had outlined four main values during the process.
Smith detailed these values, “We were looking for someone who creates a district wide positive, collaborative, and inclusive environment. Someone who provides vision driven instructional leadership focused on the present and future successes of all students. Someone who is fiscally responsible and resourceful in securing and utilizing district resources. And we were looking for someone who is a spokesperson and advocate for students and education at the local and state level.”
While Shaps didn’t know about these values during the search, he checks off every box. The importance of public education is not something lost on him, instead something he grew up with. “I come from a family of three generations that served in the military… so that sense of service and understanding the complexity of world affairs is something that has always been on my mind,” Shaps said. “It kind of brings me back to why doing this work in public schools is so important. It’s about understanding our country, our democracy, how public education is keeping our nation moving forward.”
If the coming months go according to Shaps’ plans, the ORCSD can get used to seeing him early on. Don’t be afraid to get to know your new superintendent, the man who says, “I love learning and I love being connected to it, so I hope to get to know students at all levels, their lives, and sense of community.”
– Amelia Rury
Mouth of the River 
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