After twelve years at the helm of the St. Elmo School District and many more years in education, Superintendent Deb Philpot will be retiring at the end of June 2017. The St. Elmo School Board accepted Philpot’s letter of retirement during their monthly meeting last Wednesday. Philpot has been in education for over 30 years and in an email to members of the media, Philpot addressed her pending retirement saying “Three years ago I told the St. Elmo School Board that I was requesting a four-year contract and I told them that it would be my last one as I would be retiring. We are now at that point. Although there are days that I think maybe I should work another year or two, I want to go while I feel everything is in good shape and that I am still 100% effective in my role. I believe we have a great district and fiscally we are holding our own but have made sacrifices along the way to keep our finances in good shape.” Philpot also states in the email that the St. Elmo School Board will look to begin their search for a new superintendent within the next few months.