After four years of leadership of Alvin ISD, Superintendent James "Buck" Gilcrease is formally submitting his intent to retire at the Nov. 13 board of trustees meeting. "It’s been my greatest honor to be the superintendent. This is an outstanding district. There are challenges, but the challenges have been fun challenges because of the growth," Gilcrease said. Once the board accepts the retirement, a search process will get underway. Gilcrease said he gave the board initial notice back in September. "It is my understanding the board will reach out to search firms and make a decision as quickly as possible. I will stay in some form or fashion until they get that underway and they feel like they are ready for a naming a permanent or interim at that point," Gilcrease said. At AISD he oversaw two bond elections—a $245 million bond in 2015 and most recently a $480.5 million measure Nov. 6–to address the district's rapid growth. During his five school years at AISD, enrollment increased by over 30 percent to 26,000 in 2018-19. Gilcrease was hired in 2014 after serving as superintendent at Hillsboro ISD and at Haskell CISD, both in north Texas. Originally he said he expected to retire in December 2019, but an opportunity to join the education management consulting firm Moak, Casey and Associates moved up his timeline. "With the passage of the bond and tax ratification election, the district is poised to move forward," Gilcrease said. "It’s a good time to turn the reins over to someone else and see what they can do."