EDWARDSVILLE - Dr. Beth Renth is concluding an outstanding career with Edwardsville School District 7 that spanned more than 22 years of serving students.
Renth officially retired last week. She was formally recognized by the Board of Education Monday night. She has touched the lives of countless students in her tenure.
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Toward the end of her career, Renth shared the knowledge she gained during her 22 years as principal of Worden Elementary with others, by serving as a principal trainer and mentor for the new elementary principals in the district. She stepped down as principal at Worden in May.
With many new elementary principals in the district, her insight and years of experience have been valuable for them in their transition.
“They really welcomed me with open arms, and we were able to talk through things," she said. "But they also do things differently. They are their own person and their own leader, but I am there to help them figure out what is best, especially for the kids.”
Renth started at Edwardsville School District 7 in 1995 as a teacher, spending two years at the old Edwardsville Middle School. She left for a year to take a job as a principal in another district, but quickly returned to Edwardsville Middle School as the assistant principal for two years before accepting the role as Worden principal.
Renth did not have plans to become a principal, but one of the previous districts she had worked for asked her to come in as principal and it’s a role she never left.
“I knew I was a good teacher; I just didn’t know if I was going to be a good principal. So that was scary at the time, but now I don’t know where the time has gone. It’s been great," she said. "I was able to impact more than just those 20 students in my classroom and impact a larger group of students.”
Those students have also been what she has enjoyed the most.
“This has just always been home," she said of District 7. "And I’ve also felt - and still feel - like Worden is a family.”
