TYLER, Texas — Tyler Independent School District has announced the passing of Board of Trustees member Freeman Sterling.
Sterling served District 3 for the Tyler ISD school board.
“Mr. Sterling was so revered in Tyler ISD,” Superintendent Dr. Marty Crawford said. “From his time as a teacher and later a principal for the District, to his work mentoring teachers after retirement, and most recently as a Trustee, his calm and peaceful presence was characteristic of the love he shared for our teachers, staff, and students. His spirit of service will endure, well past this moment of grief.
Sterling was elected to the Tyler ISD Board of Trustees to represent District 3 in May 2019 and has a long-standing career in education. He attended W.A. Peete Elementary School, A.T. Stewart Middle School and Robert E. Lee High School, where he was an honor graduate and ranked in the top 10 percent of his graduating class. He began his teaching career in Tyler ISD at Rice Elementary School, however he touched the lives of many Tyler ISD students and staff over his career with teaching roles at Jones and T.J. Austin elementary schools before returning to W.A. Peete Elementary School where he served as principal for 18 years.
“We are all shocked and saddened by the news of Mr. Sterling’s passing,” Board President Wade Washmon said. “He was as fine of a man as there is, and there will be a hole in the hearts of the Board as we cope with this loss. His service on the Board has been impactful, and he surely impacted a countless number of people through his years of service as an educator, mentor, and principal. There’s no telling how many lives he’s touched along the way.”