- Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools
- Front Page
Darlene Anderson Retiring After 28 Years
December 1, 2022 – For the better part of three decades, Darlene Anderson has helped students and staff in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools navigate technology to make the most of the educational experience. Now, she’s retiring and leaving behind a long legacy of progress.
After earning her degree from Davidson County Community College, Anderson began her career with WS/FCS in 1994 as a school technician. She stayed in that position for 11 years before taking on a technical support leadership role for the central office. Anderson was the first woman to work for the district as a school technician, as well as the first black person. She says that many people she knew expected the demographics to make things difficult for her, but it was nothing new to her – she had been the only black woman in her program in college as well.
“I was often asked if I felt intimidated, but I really wasn’t,” Anderson said. “I had gotten pretty acclimated to standing out.”
When Anderson came to WS/FCS, schools were just beginning to integrate technologies like the internet, Windows, and CD-ROMs into the classroom. Since then, she’s seen the advent of tablets, electronic whiteboards, student laptops, and a treasure trove of educational apps and software that have changed the way schools handle technology. Remaining effective in technical services means that you can never stop learning and adapting to the next big thing. Keeping up with the times is a massive hurdle of the job, but she likes the challenge that it provides.
“Everything is constantly changing and growing, and you’ve just got to be able to keep up,” Anderson said. “I appreciate that it keeps me busy.”
The district has made incredible strides in tech services during Anderson’s tenure. Even in just the last couple of years, her team provided indispensable support to the district during the pandemic by coordinating the transition to employee laptops and resolving issues related to internet connectivity and conferencing software. Anderson has also seen many more black women join the team since she started, an encouraging sign that professional opportunities in WS/FCS for people of all backgrounds are growing all the time.
“I’d like to think of myself as a groundbreaker,” Anderson said. “We’ve grown a lot in the last 30 years.”
Anderson is looking forward to an opportunity to slow down and spend more time with her family, especially her grandbabies. Still, she’ll look back on her time with WS/FCS as a rewarding experience. She never stopped helping people and making their jobs and their educations better, and the positive connections she’s made along the way will stick with her forever.
“Just being able to help people who need you is the best part of the job,” Anderson said. “And the hugs. Can’t forget about the hugs.”