The former chief operating officer of the Gwinnett County Public Schools, Jim Steele, died June 21 in Toccoa at the age of 73 from the maladies of prostate cancer. At his own request, there will be no funeral, because, as he stated: “Funerals were too sad and morbid.” His body will be cremated and his ashes will be scattered on a new road he had just seen finished on his farm in Toccoa.
Steele
Besides his official duties, Mr. Steele was heavily involved with the local community, as well as in state and national activities.
Leonard James Steele grew up in Toccoa, where his father was a veterinarian, making numerous visits to farms to see his father doctor sick animals. From this grew a lifetime of appreciation of farm life. In his retirement, he raised a herd of Simmental Angus cattle and attempted to restore his grandfather’s farm. He also did consulting work with St. Bourke, a development company out of Australia, regarding projected development in the north end of Gwinnett.
After attending North Georgia College, he graduated from the University of Georgia, and immediately went into construction for six years, managing complex construction sites, at one time overseeing 10-15 ongoing projects. Mr. Steele joined the Gwinnett County Public Schools in 1976, in facility planning and construction. Eventually he became COO of the system, headed building, ground and fleet maintenance, public safety, environmental and supply, risk management, contract engineering, continuous quality improvement and transportation. Among his accolades, he guided his division in earning the prestigious Malcolm Baldridge-based “Georgia Oglethorpe Award for performance excellence.” The District’s Facilities and Operations complex on Gwinnett Drive in Lawrenceville was named for him earlier this year.
Meanwhile, he was responsible for building new schools for the growing Gwinnett system, more than anyone in the country, a total of 97during his 38 years with the system. His buildings came in on time and under budget, and were built with efficient maintenance operations in mind.
Amid his other duties, he started the School Resource Officer program, first becoming a deputy sheriff in Gwinnett County “to learn more about policing,” as he said. He was past president of the Georgia Police Chiefs Association.
He taught classes for 20 years on contract law to the Georgia Superintendent’s Institute and also had a 50 hour session on facilities and operations. He was also a keynote speaker for national and state groups.
The current school superintendent, Alvin Wilbanks, said of him: “Jim Steele was a colleague and friend who enjoyed his job, was very successful, and made a positive difference in his areas of Facilities and Operations. His leadership and influence was felt throughout the State and his work set the benchmark for others to follow. I will miss Jim Steele.”
Among Mr. Steele’s many other local activities:
- Public Service Award winner in 1976 of Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce.
- Charter board member and for more than 20 years president of Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful. Keep America Beautiful awarded its top national award to Jim: the Iron Eyes Cody Award.
- Charter class of the Institute of Georgia Environmental Leadership.
- Graduate of Leadership Gwinnett.
- Member of the Eastside Hospital Board of Directors for 20 years.
- Long-time member and former president of Gwinnett Rotary Club and a Paul Harris Fellow.
- A director who helped plan the J.M. Tull YMCA.
Jim Steele met his wife, Adele, a native of Vermont and a school counselor, when he was supervising the first addition to Berkmar High School. They had been married for 46 years.
Besides his wife, leaves behind a family which includes his sister, Patty Kleinert of Alto; a brother, Charles Steele of Toccoa; and a son, Capt. Jimmy Galbreath of Mountain City.
The Jim Steele Environmental Education Scholarship Fund at the Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia has been created in honor of Jim’s passion for education, love of the environment and commitment to making a difference. Donations may be made to www.CFNEG.org, The Community Foundation for Northeast Georgia, 6500 Sugarloaf Parkway, Suite 220, Duluth, Ga. 30097 with J. Steele EE Scholarship in the memo line.
- Check out this five-minute video, Jim Steele: Built to Last, that Gwinnett County Public Schools published when he retired about Jim’s legacy in the community.
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