From the Burlington Free Press:

After nearly two decades as the face of the state's governing body of middle and high school athletics and activities, Bob Johnson has called it a career.

Johnson, the associate executive director of the Vermont Principals' Association, retired after 19 years. June 30 officially marked his final day.

VPA Executive Director Jay Nichols said Johnson "leaves a powerful legacy behind."

"When athletic directors, school leaders, officials, coaches, parents, community members, and student-athletes themselves call with high school sports questions, Bob always has the answer to their questions," Nichols wrote in an email to the Free Press. "More importantly, Bob understood that high school athletics is an extension of learning itself. Bob did not focus on the importance of winning in high school sports; rather he focused on the valuable life-lessons that high school athletics can teach such as hard work, collaboration, cooperation, self-sacrifice, discipline, and sportsmanship."

The VPA held a retirement party for Johnson, a Danville resident, last weekend in Burlington. He handed out his final VPA state championship hardware at the boys lacrosse title games at Virtue Field on June 11.

Johnson is a 1976 graduate of Johnson State College, now known as Northern Vermont University. Prior to the VPA gig, he worked several positions over a 17-year period in the Lamoille and Danville school districts, including principal at the high school level at The Danville School.

At the VPA, Johnson's era included the rise of cooperative teams and member-to-member programs, to help offset declining school enrollment affecting athletic participation, and the challenging times created by the COVID-19 pandemic. Under Johnson's watch, the VPA also added bass fishing, volleyball, Ultimate, dance, bowling and Unified basketball as varsity programs.

VPA hires Lauren Thomas as Johnson's successor

Lauren Thomas' tenure in charge of sports at the VPA began Friday, July 1. Thomas, the principal of Grand Isle Elementary School since 2018, has experience supervising athletic directors and played tennis and rugby in high school and college, Nichols said.

"As a principal, she understands organizational dynamics and structures. She is one of those life-long-learners that is always growing as a leader," Nichols said. "We think she is a great fit at this time to build on the legacy left behind by Bob Johnson's work and help the VPA continue to evolve."

Previously, Thomas served as a director of curriculum, instruction and assessment in Driggs, Idaho, and was an assistant principal of athletics and facilities at a California high school.