Sharing her passion for education, Paula Gault exemplifies a role model for students, teachers, and the community. Since 2001, Paula has served as Superintendent of Forsyth County schools. Her retirement this December will end her twenty-eight year career in education - twenty-seven of those years in Forsyth County. As one of the top five fastest growing counties in the nation, Forsyth has doubled the square footage of its schools since 2001 to over 4 million square feet. Paula attributes her success in keeping pace with this rapid growth - while improving the quality of education - to the excellent technical, instructional, and community support the school district has received. As one of four finalists for 2007 Georgia Superintendent of the Year, Paula has been recognized by the Forsyth County Board of Education and the community for her achievements. She greets each day and each task with enthusiasm. On one typical day this fall, Paula visited a school to speak to the faculty, met with the District's head custodians to thank them for their great work in getting four new schools ready to open, met with the teaching and learning staff about special needs students, and visited new construction sites of the five schools that will open in 2009. Later in the day, she joined with the Sheriff to judge a student art contest and then attended a School Board meeting. Also, in preparation for her retirement, Paula has visited schools and attended Civic clubs to introduce Forsyth County's new Superintendent, Dr. L.C. (Buster) Evans to the community.

Paula's love for teaching began at an early age when, as the oldest of five children, she enjoyed helping and working with her brothers and sisters. Education was rooted in Paula's family, which has been settled in Forsyth County for five generations. Her father served on the Forsyth County Board of Education from 1955-1960, and her mother worked briefly as a teacher. Paula began her education in the Old Cumming Schoolhouse, which is now part of the Cumming Historical Center. She recalls, "All grades, first through high school, were housed in that same building. I remember some of the great teachers that I had there such as my fifth grade teacher, Ms. Mary Rucker, who made a lasting impression on me and inspired me with her love of reading. In 1956, Forsyth County High School opened and I graduated from there, in 1964, among a class of 95 students. My high school teacher Ms. Betty Benson, a former Assistant Superintendent, helped to start the first Future Teachers Club in Forsyth County in the early 1960s. As a member, I was given the opportunity to work with students and, since that experience, teaching is the only career I ever seriously considered. Though I worked in my family business for a while, my heart was in education and it has been an extremely rewarding profession."

After graduating from the University of Georgia, Paula taught second grade in Clark County for one year, then returned to Forsyth County to work in her family's business. While raising four daughters, she taught preschool at the local Methodist church. Then, from 1980-1990 she taught second grade at Cumming Elementary School. Melissa Sessa, Forsyth County's 2007 Teacher of the Year, was a student in Paula's second grade class at Cumming Elementary School in 1982. Sessa said, "Ms. Gault always had a smile to greet us in the morning and let you know that she cared about you. My grandmother died that year and Ms. Gault took me under her wing. I will always remember how kind she was to me, especially during that difficult time. I remember eagerly wanting to learn each day because she made learning interesting. Ms. Gault was my role model and inspired me to become a teacher." After working on a Masters Degree and Leadership Certification, Paula worked as Assistant Principal at Big Creek Elementary and Chestatee Elementary from 1990 to 1993. Working under two different principals at the same time enabled her to experience different leadership styles. Her next position moved her to the District Office as Director of Special Curriculums where Paula learned about the remedial and gifted programs and met people from all over the County. Paula then became Assistant to the Superintendent before becoming Associate Superintendent. She recalls, "I never imagined leaving the classroom but enjoyed being involved in day-to-day decision-making at the District Office."

In the 1990s, Forsyth was the second fastest growing County in the Nation. The school district has grown from 10,000 students in 1995 to over 30,500 students today. Paula attributes the school system's successful growth to team work. Having learned the importance of establishing relationships, she feels they are the greatest rewards of her career. "Being able to recruit high quality staff has been key to the success of Forsyth County schools," said Paula. 'We work hard to keep a 'small system feel' as we grow to be a very large system. The community has high expectations of the schools - the students, staff, administration, and the Board. The growth has given us opportunities to do things for the students that I never would have dreamed possible." The great support of the community has helped with the challenges of growth through support in the passing of SPLOST and bond referendums to fund the growth and improvement of Forsyth County's educational facilities. Amid the rapid growth and change in Forsyth County schools, one thing has remained constant. Paula remarks, "There has always been great parental support in our schools, but throughout the growth, we have seen even more support from parents wanting to help improve our schools in any way possible. Parents moved to Forsyth County with very high expectations of our education system and have been more than willing to give their support, which has been great."

During her life as an educator in Forsyth, Paula has seen many changes. There is increased accountability and more pressure on the District, students, and teachers. She said, "Higher accountability forces everyone to look at subgroups that might need extra help and to not just focus on the forefront. Teaching has become more stressful; longer hours are required to meet the expectations of accountability. But, there have been great strides in instructional support for teachers and technology in the classroom. As the community has grown, it has become more diverse and I think that it is a wonderful thing for our community, for our schools, and especially for our students who get to go to school with other students from different ethnic groups and nationalities." Working with a great staff and the students to establish academic achievement, has made Paula's job as Superintendent even more rewarding. CRCT scores are among the top in the State and SAT scores continue to rise. The graduation rate has increased up to 83% and, she hopes, it will continue to rise. Paula is proud that Forsyth County schools have acquired state-of-the-art technology, including the largest installation of interactive white boards in the world. Paula said, "As an educator I have evolved with great luck and faith in God to take on challenges, expand horizons, and change with the growth. Realizing that things are not going to stay the same, I learned that rather than complaining, we need to deal with it positively. I have been fortunate to work with a great team of people and we have the best teachers, administration and central staff." Paula Gault is looking forward to retirement, so she can spend more time with her family, which includes eleven grandchildren, all of whom reside in Forsyth County. After a family celebration in Disney World, Paula says she will travel, volunteer in the community, and enjoy simple pleasures like reading a book.