William Lomax has been a devoted assistant principal at our school for 23 years. His career comes to an end this year, as he plans to retire in the summer.
“I’m gonna leave APS the same way I came in: quietly,” Assistant Principal William Lomax said.
However, Lomax’s plans for secrecy were thwarted when students and administrators planned a clap-out in our school’s atrium, where hundreds of seniors stood to give a roaring applause to the man who guided them for four years.
Past and present, students have always appreciated Lomax. In our recent conversation, the retiree described a touching moment he recently shared with a student who left Yorktown several years ago.
“We caught up and we chatted and as I walked away, he said, ‘Mr. Lomax, I love you.’ And I didn’t feel as though it was just something that he said just to say. I really believe that he meant that,” Lomax said.
Not only do students appreciate Lomax; our school’s principal Dr. Kevin Clark can attest to his character as well.
“Mr. Lomax is the best. He’s a class act, professional, and (he) brings out the best in people,” Clark said.
Clark went on to describe Lomax as a model administrator. For over two decades, he motivated students and made Arlington a better place to be in. Our school has clearly benefited from having Lomax, but Lomax admits to learning things from us as well.
“Certain ideas were reinforced for me at our school, like how to treat people and how to interact with people. The idea that relationships are very important, they perhaps mean more than other things that you find in life,” Lomax said.
As assistant principal, he has picked up high opinions of public education.

“High school is where you’re setting the stage for your next phase of life. It’s like the final frontier before a young person moves from school to the world of work, college or the military. And so the idea is to make certain that students have the tools that they need to move to that next phase of life,” Lomax said.
His strong voice in our community will be missed. After his retirement in June, Lomax plans to take to the skies and travel.
“I have plans to go to Europe in September, Barbados in December and Egypt in the spring,” Lomax said.
Although excited to travel, Lomax will miss a few things about our school, mostly, the students. However, he also fondly mentions the good teamwork he experienced here working with the staff.
“Despite changes in the principals, we have always been able to work well together. We really do. Nobody’s perfect. And I guess we all realize that. But I think as a team, we complement one another. We support one another,” Lomax said.
From his problem-solving skills, to his amazingly open demeanor, along with the belief he has in every student to succeed, we will miss everything about Mr. Lomax.
Looking forward, he has wise advice to whoever may fill his role.
“Engage students in life,” Lomax said.
Thank you, Mr. Lomax!

After 25 years at our school, beloved College and Career Counselor MD Calabro is retiring. Over the years, he has helped students apply to colleges and pave their bright futures.
Calabro has worked hard for all he has achieved and is happy with the path he has taken to reach his goals. His original career choice was photography, and he majored in Fine Arts in undergraduate school. Though he did not receive an undergraduate education that directly correlates to his job as a counselor, Calabro believes that this art-focused education has helped him in many ways.
“I actually thought it was a great decision. You learn a lot about yourself and dealing with people,” Calabro said.

Calabro enjoyed photography, but he eventually saw it as a career that would be hard to succeed in. He found his true calling to be a college counselor and went back to school.
“I went back to graduate school, studied counseling and got my masters in 1990,” Calabro said.
After graduation in 1990, he began working at Wakefield High School. He worked there for seven years, then he spent a year working in Venezuela. In 1998, he began working at our school and has worked here ever since.
Calabro hasn’t had much change in the past 25 years. However, five years ago he decided to withdraw from traditional counseling.
“I focused in the last five years as the College and Career Counselor. Prior to the last five years I was a traditional college counselor,” Calabro said
He will greatly miss getting to work with our school’s staff on the daily. He has enjoyed surrounding himself with amazing people.
“I’ve been fortunate to be part of a great team that allowed me to work with students and observe as they go through the process of learning about themselves and setting where they want to go to college,” Calabro said.
Calabro will not only miss the staff at Yorktown, but also the students. He believes that connecting with each student he meets is the most important part of his job. He offered advice for other counselors.
“Listen to the students and get to know the students. Be there for the students,” Calabro said.
He has loved his job and doesn’t want to give up all aspects of it. However, he wants to share the benefits of his job with whoever will take over after him.
“I may continue going into the college career counseling area independently. I may work internationally. But I find it’s time to have someone else take over and move on to this position,” Calabro said.
Though Calabro will miss working at our school, he is excited for what retirement may bring. He is not certain what he will do with his time, but he has some ideas.
“Concrete plans [for after retirement] would be traveling and renovating my home,” Calabro said.
Calabro will reminisce on all the wonderful years at our school throughout his retirement.

“I love to work with incredible colleagues, students and families. My position allows me to witness the positive and life changing experiences that our education system provides our students. It’s been a pleasure to work at Arlington Public Schools for the past 33 years and I greatly appreciate the people I’ve met and worked with in those years,” Calabro said

After over 30 years working at our school, Physics and Astronomy teacher Dr. Daniel Carroll has announced his retirement. Our school is so thankful for all of the good work and the enormous impact that Dr. Carroll has had on our students and the community as a whole.
Always recognized as one of the friendliest people in the school, it is well known that Dr. Carroll was always there if you needed someone to chat with.
“I know people talk about what I have given to students over the years, but really I have received a lot from students. I have learned to be kind to people. Everyone has something inside that needs caring for,” Carroll said.
Aside from all of the material Dr. Carroll has taught students inside the classroom, he was most well known for the personal connections he developed with each student.
“Dr. Carroll was definitely my favorite teacher, and I know a lot of my friends who had him loved his class too,” senior Ben Stern said.
His hard-working and selfless demeanor, along with his ability to make learning fun, have led to Dr. Carroll being the rare kind of teacher that students will talk about outside of the classroom. Graduating students recall their experiences in his class as younger students hope to be a part of it in the future.
“I really liked his style of teaching. It was very hands-on and he was very active in the class. I definitely think that helped me learn the material better,” senior Bradley Labant said.
Looking forward, Dr. Carroll is excited to achieve feats he did not have time for while managing his busy teaching schedule.
“I have lots of things that I have wanted to try and lots of ideas for things to do. Something like [sailing] the Great Loop [a sailing route which encompasses the eastern half of the United States via coasts and rivers] on a boat,” Carroll said.
Along with the exciting adventures Dr. Carroll has planned, he also has some personal habits that he hopes to keep up with in the future.
“I was planning on continuing running. I have set some goals that I want to see if I can run faster than a three hour and 15 minute marathon again. I’m looking to see what challenges there are for me now.”
Our school is very excited to see the great things Dr. Carroll will accomplish and are forever grateful for his contributions during his 24 amazing years in our community.

As the school year comes to a close, seniors aren’t the only ones who won’t be returning in the fall. Chemistry teacher Laurie Vena will be saying farewell to her colleagues after 30 years of service at our school. Vena has loved the people she’s been able to work with throughout the years.
“I love the people I work with, I have always loved them … I’m the oldest one here, and I used to be the baby. But, just the pleasure that I have had in working with the people that I have been with in science, and in the other areas too, but primarily in science, and who I see every day,” Vena said.
Vena has been involved with kids since she was a teenager. As a high schooler, she spent her summers around younger kids, and her passion for teaching has continued ever since.
“I worked at a daycare center a couple days [per week] after school. And I loved the kids; they were great.” Vena said.
When she left high school, Vena wanted to pursue a career in engineering. Once she got to college, however, she found it hard to develop a sense of camaraderie with her classmates due to the lack of women in her field. She changed her major to biochemistry but questioned where she could take it in life. Many people close to her suggested teaching, so she decided to give it a shot.
“I came right out of college. I graduated from Virginia Tech in May of 1992, and started working (at Yorktown) in September of ‘92,” Vena said.
During her time at our school she’s made very fond memories with students. One that stands out the most is a field trip with an AP Chemistry class.
“I took one of my AP Chemistry classes on what we called the coal mine tour. We had finished our AP tests and then we went off and into Pennsylvania. Then we toured a coal mine and it was an active coal mine. Then I drove a big bus to a converted caboose motel. We just had a blast,” Vena said.
While she’s most well known for teaching 10th grade and AP Chemistry, Vena has taught other classes over the years. One that particularly stands out is her experience teaching Physics.
“I had to teach Physics for one year to keep my job. It was not fun. It was not my ideal subject … Everybody has what they like. Teaching Physics just wasn’t something I wanted to do but I had to complete my five period teaching positions. But they were a very lovely group of kids, very smart,” Vena said.
Even though she’ll miss our school, Vena has high hopes going into retirement. She is looking into volunteering for Phlebotomy, which is blood drawing, to keep her busy.
“I just love to talk to people. I love to experience stuff with other people. I’m very much an extrovert. And I get my [energy] from talking to people,” Vena said.
Mrs. Vena prides herself greatly on being a social person. She loves interacting with people more than anything. It’s something everybody will notice when they first meet her. She wants the best for the students and their futures so she leaves them with a final word.
“You don’t have to do everything right the first time, you’re still a kid. It’s time for you to learn these things now. So it’s okay to fail sometimes, but figure out what you need to do to get better and don’t stop working on that,” Vena said.
Thank you, Ms. Vena!