Clovis Unified School District graduate and long-time employee starts new role as superintendent

CLOVIS, Calif. (KFSN) -- As school starts in the Fall, there will be a new face leading the Clovis Unified School District.

Corrine Folmer has taken over the role as superintendent after Eimear O'Brien retired last month.

Folmer has been superintendent for less than two weeks, but her familiarity with the school system dates back to when she was a little girl.

"I was a third generation clovis unified product. So, my grandfather went through Clovis Unified before it was a district and my dad." Folmer said.

She went to Jefferson Elementary and was one of first few graduating classes from Buchanan High School.

While there, she made her mark as an athlete.

She was part of the 1994 cross-country team that won the state championship.

"I loved to compete, I loved playing sports, I liked being part of a team, which is probably why I've chosen the field I've chosen," Folmer said.

She attended Fresno State on a full-ride scholarship for soccer and played all four years.

She worked part-time as a special education instructional assistant while in school and graduated with her bachelors, master's and doctoral degrees.

She returned to Clovis Unified as a teacher in 2003, where she taught special education and math at Clovis East High School.

"And I loved that experience. There is no greater privilege than getting to work with our kids," Folmer said.

Since then, she's held various positions including vice principal at Sierra Vista Elementary School, principal at Fancher Creek Elementary School and most recently, the Associate Superintendent of School Leadership.

With two decades of work in the district, she's using that knowledge in her biggest role yet.

"You learn a little bit more of how a very large district works, you have a different perspective and you gain these experiences of which you continue to build upon," Folmer said.

Less than two weeks into her new position, she says projects and planning are well underway.

With two daughters, the fourth generation of her family, in the district, she's hoping to continue to build on the legacy of superintendents before her.

"I take great pride in what we stand for, for Clovis Unified," Folmer said. "It's an organization that I wholeheartedly believe in, and I would hope that people would see that in me."

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