Sweet Home names McDow director of finance
by DAVID F. SHERMAN Managing Editor

McDow

Robert S. McDow, former project administrator for the Buffalo Board of Education, has joined the Sweet Home Central School District.

McDow has been named director of finance, succeeding Thomas Miller, who retired.

During his five years with the Buffalo Board of Education, Mc- Dow oversaw the reconstruction of numerous school buildings.

"Most were 75 to 80 years old and in severely dilapidated condition," he said. "Our goal was to restore them to 21st century standards."

A Buffalo native, McDow earned his bachelor's degree in finance in 1991 from St. Bonaventure University. He also earned three master's degrees from Canisius College.

Earlier this year, he was one of 17 individuals recognized by the Commission on Independent Colleges and Universities as "trail blazers for their families and communities."

He sees his position with Sweet Home as a natural progression in his career path.

"This is an ideal district for me," he said. "I have a lot to learn, but it's a district in which I can grow. My heart is in finance, but it's also in the kids."

McDow referenced the fact that 85 percent of the students in Buffalo schools are impoverished, but the reconstruction project made a difference in the lives of many of them.

"They can walk around in pride over their buildings," he said.

Emergence as a role model is not lost on McDow, who stressed he will be working in the background on many aspects of district operations.

"I want the students to know I've lived what they are living. They can see me in a new capacity in the hallways," he said.

He admires the track record of the Sweet Home district and its approximately 3,700 students.

"Ninety-two percent of the students graduate - 60 percent with honors. That's phenomenal," he said. "The information technology network is state of the art, and the buildings and grounds are in great condition.

"It's a 21st century district moving into the 22nd."

In the weeks and months ahead, the Board of Education will begin crafting the 2008-09 budget, with McDow offering financial insight.

"My job is to put as many resources back into the classroom as possible," he said. "In Buffalo, we did a lot with a little. The kids deserve it because they are our new leaders." e-mail: dsherman@beenews.com