As the school day turned into the evening, the quiet and loud voices of students died down. Alumni from the classes of 1976 to 1979 filled the familiar corridors, greeting decades-old friends and lingering in spaces that looked much different. The pit, once the media center; the stairs to the gym, once a teaching space; the mezzanine, once a computer lab.
On Dec. 4, these alumni gathered in the 900’s wing to honor Ron Watson, South’s first principal, who died in 2018. A dedication plaque was installed prior to the ceremony on the wall of the 900’s, honoring a leader who was a Korean War veteran, a passionate gardener, a Civil War historian, a recipient of former president George H.W. Bush’s “Thousand Points of Light” award for volunteer service, and the man who built the foundation of South culture.
The memorial opened with Suzanne Jones Albanese (‘77) introducing key speakers, including District Superintendent of Schools Dr. David Aderhold, Assistant Superintendent of Pupil Services and Planning Jessica Cincotta and Principal Valerie Rodriguez.
The 2025 dedication held symbolic meaning. “I think that alumni and his family jumped on the 50th class graduating,” said Principal Valerie Rodriguez. “My understanding is some of the people facilitating the event had reached out to both Ms. Cincotta last year as well as Dr. Aderhold and requested such an event.”
During the summer, this group commemorated Principal Watson by placing the words “Pirate Pride and Spirit” on a banner posted above the 900’s wing, where the old library used to be. This motto was Principal Watson’s legacy.
In 1973, he held up signs with these same words on South’s first day of school as students entered for the first time. “In that quiet, symbolic moment, he was not just placing words on a wall, he was articulating a vision, setting a tone and quietly defining what the school would stand for in the years and decades to come,” said Larry Fieber, a South teacher and administrator from 1973 to 2004.
Since that first day, Principal Watson guided with a clear vision. He led a remarkable group of teachers and students. “We were privileged to be taught by young, innovative, excited teachers who really, really cared about us,” said Albanese. “Ron helped foster this caring, life giving environment.”
Most importantly, Principal Watson left behind a guide for his successors in leading South. “My first day was anything but normal,” said Dr. Joanne Bartoletti, South’s principal from 1984 to 1991 and assistant principal under Principal Watson. “A student had died unexpectedly the previous evening, and as I sat in Ron’s office expecting the orientation of the new assistant principal, Ron told me to write an announcement about the student’s life and read it on the PA to the entire student body.
“Administrators rarely made announcements. That was a responsibility given to students. It was at that moment I learned one of Ron Watson’s greatest strengths: giving someone responsibility and trusting them to follow through,” she added.
He had an undeniable ability to connect with people. He used the open space, a new concept for school design, to his advantage. “He was always out walking around. He knew every single student in the building. He was very rarely in his office. He would come to all the sports activities, the games, and so he brought about a lot of spirit,” said Ms. Leslie Fisher, who worked as a South teacher and counselor from 1977 to 2009.
This philosophy is exactly what South staff today builds on. “He was the leader who gave you a task and trusted you to do it,” said Ms. Rodriguez. “I couldn’t help myself but think that if Mr. Covington and I were standing up there, our speeches would be exactly the same to a dime with everything that they talked about.”
The most remarkable part of his leadership will always be the people he touched. “His legacy is not captured only in buildings, awards and records,” said Mr. Fieber. “But it was in the choices made by students who earned confidence and purpose in their
careers, formed by teachers who discovered their voices and the culture of a school district that continues to value the Pirate spirit because Ron Watson taught us to do so.”
