Dick Neptune, who led Lawton Public Schools for 12 years, didn’t plan career in education

Dick Neptune didn’t plan to become an educator. Or, so he said after a 40-year career in Lawton Public Schools.

Neptune, a product of the school district he taught in then led for 12 years, died Sunday. And, while he formally ceded his superintendent’s office in January 1997, he never quite left his community or his students behind. He lingers in memories — former colleagues who credit him with educational advances that benefited students; a one-time student who remembers a teacher with a great sense of humor and one who also appreciated it in teens; a reporter who watched him walk hand-in-hand down the hallway of a school with a young girl as she led him to an activity.

Neptune knew exactly what he wanted to do with his life when he graduated from Lawton High School: he wanted to be a professional photographer. He already was on that path, working with a city photographer and earning good money when fate came calling (Neptune called it the first of the “taps” that guided him through his LPS career).

The first tap brought him to the classroom: he taught photography for three years at his alma mater before becoming the district’s first activities director. Then, he moved into administration: as assistant principal in 1962 at the brand new Eisenhower Junior/Senior High, then as its principal in 1969 after it became a stand-alone high school. He moved to the district’s “head shed” in 1977, first as assistant superintendent, then as deputy superintendent in 1982. In 1985 came the only LPS job he ever interviewed for: superintendent (all his other jobs came through “taps”). Neptune was content; he said he never really wanted to move to a larger district.

“It’s unusual, but I’ve had a really good experience with this district,” he said in March 1996. “One thing here is the close relationship with teachers, administrators and support staff. It’s different than in most other districts. It’s just conducive to a good partnership.”

Howard Kuchta, who worked with Neptune for years, said he remembers distinct attributes: he was a visionary for Lawton and for Lawton Public Schools; he was a progressive leader, thinker and planner who also personified the principles of inclusion and equity for those under his responsibility. And, he always sought the perspective of students and faculty before making educational decisions, Kuchta said.

“He was student-friendly, even insisting on putting the welfare of students above everything else,” he said.

Albert Johnson Jr. said his late father Albert Johnson Sr. enjoyed the years he worked with Neptune, even retiring within a year of each other.

“I know there was a profound, mutual respect between the two of them,” Johnson said, adding he always suspected Neptune was responsible for bringing the senior Johnson to his role as LPS deputy superintendent, adding that his father always maintained deep respect for Superintendent Hugh Bish and Neptune for what they did for the district and for the standards they set.

Howard Johnson, then LPS director of adult and community education, said when he wanted to expand lifelong learning programs, he was fortunate to have the strong support of Johnson Senior, and both men knew when they had a new idea, Neptune was “an easy-sell.” When they wanted to add a high school completion program and community education program (which was to include an extended school day program in elementary schools), Neptune liked the idea, but suggested they begin with a pilot program at Edison Elementary before expanding to other schools.

He said Neptune’s cautious approach and Edison Principal Billy Davis’ work ensured success.

“Over a period of years, we were able to use the Edison pilot plan to expand extended-school-day programs to every Lawton elementary school. Other communities in Oklahoma used the Lawton model to create similar programs in their school districts,” Johnson said. “Without Mr. Neptune’s’ support and tempered approach to starting the program, the extended-day program — which continues to flourish today — may have never taken root.”

While Johnson has many memories, it might be a simple gift he treasures the most. When Neptune retired, he presented each central office administrator with a uniquely engraved stone with a one-word message. Johnson’s, perched on a path in his backyard, says “Grow.”

“When I received it, I thought maybe it meant, ‘Grow up,’ but after further reflection, I decided — more optimistically — that it meant that he was encouraging me to continue dreaming and contributing to the betterment of our community,” he said.

Charlotte Oates, director of the Life Ready Center, said Neptune touched her life on both sides of her educational experience: he was her principal when she was a high school student, and he was her superintendent when she was a principal. As a student, she remembers a “cool” man, and she wasn’t the only teen who thought so.

“He was the coolest cat of all. The way he dressed and wore his hair, and the way he talked to kids,” Oates said, explaining in that era (1969-1971), he was always dressed sharply, and was friendly with students rather than staying in his office — in a word, cool. “He dressed and acted the part.”

Oates said Neptune retained that hands-on approach when he became superintendent. She said she always felt comfortable contacting Neptune, and it amazed and delighted her that he remembered her as one of his high school students. She said Neptune and his wife Carol supported her efforts from the time she stepped onto the administrative stage.

“He was quite something,” Oates said.