Gail Russell has retired after spending 30 years as a teacher, assistant principal and principal in Streator, first as a teacher at St. Anthony School for four years, then 26 years within the Streator Elementary School District.

She ended her tenure leading many teachers she’d taught when they were children.

Russell and Chris Isermann both started teaching in Streator at the same time in 1990, but they’ve been friends for about 50 years.

“Gail is the leader, no matter what position she’s in; I think that’s one of the most important things about her,” Isermann said. “When she was a teacher, we were actually co-president of the union for five years. She was a leader for teachers at that time, and it really helped her move into leadership roles.

“When I say she changed positions, it didn’t change who she was. It just revealed the true essence of her character and highlighted her as a person that’s passionate about relationships.”

Isermann said this year’s eighth grade class was special to Russell; Russell had been principal at Oakland Park School when it was closed before she moved to Sherman School, which was closed after just four years of her being principal.

“She has that group of kids that she has had since they were in kindergarten who followed her from Oakland Park to Sherman to Northlawn,” Isermann said. “I don’t know what the word is, but she cares so much about those kids. To move kids like that and for parents and staff to move like that, very few people could have done that and kept people going. That’s a leader, someone that can pull that off and have people going in with hope, excitement and focus.”

Kelly Cole is one such teacher who followed Russell from school to school, but she met her before that playing slow-pitch softball at Owens Field.

Cole teaches fifth grade at Northlawn, but she taught at Sherman before that, having Russell as both a co-worker and a principal.

“Gail is always firm, fair and consistent; we know her heart is in the right place to help students,” Cole said. “She’s a native here just like I am, and she truly understood what it’s like to grow up here. She took the time to know the families and invest her time in their education. We’ll miss her leadership and friendship in retirement.”

Isermann outlined the importance of Russell being a Streator native as well, saying it gave her an understanding of the community’s needs. It never had to be explained to her.

“She came back to Streator and gave back,” Isermann said. “People trust her because of that. She’s impacted a lot of people and families here. She’s very deserving of her retirement.”

Some of the students graduating from Northlawn in 2020 were children she worked with through two school closures.

“These last three months [in regard to COVID-19 campus closures] have solidified what I have known for a long time: The students are the joyful part of my job,” Russell said. “I will miss them.”

Russell said when she started her career, she was teaching the children of people she went to high school with, and as a principal she started working with the children of students she taught.

“There is no better feeling than having a student come up to me and ask, ‘Do you know so-and-so? He’s my dad! You were his math teacher!’ ” Russell said. “It helped me build good relationships with families. The students already felt like they knew me.”

Russell said the students have changed over the years and for the most part, students are a good reflection of changes in society. She said children and parents today navigate challenges that are extremely difficult and impact students at school, just like they did in the past.