The superintendent of Carroll County’s public schools said Tuesday that he will retire from the system after the 2018 school year.

Stephen Guthrie, who has been superintendent of the system of about 25,000 students since 2010, will finish his second four-year term June 30, 2018.

He announced his retirement plans Tuesday at a school board meeting in Westminster. Guthrie, 61, said he decided when he first took the job that “two terms was all I was interested in serving.” He said it’s important to change leadership every eight to 10 years for progress. “You need new focus; you need new eyes,” he said.

Guthrie was named Maryland Superintendent of the Year for 2015, and that same year served as president of the Public School Superintendents Association of Maryland.

Prior to becoming superintendent, he was a social studies teacher, a school counselor, director of human resources and assistant superintendent of administration under his predecessor, Charles I. Ecker.

Guthrie began teaching in Carroll schools in 1982, and earlier taught in California and Pennsylvania.

He led the system during recent periods of declining enrollment. Last year, Guthrie recommended closure of Charles Carroll Elementary, New Windsor Middle and North Carroll High schools — a decision that prompted a more than yearlong legal battle with opponents. A judge upheld the decision in May.

Board of Education President Devon Rothschild credited Guthrie with working through “some of the hardest times” the system has faced in recent years. She said the search for a new superintendent begins immediately. The board will use the Maryland Association of Boards of Education to help conduct a national search.

Guthrie, who lives with his wife in Finksburg, said he plans to look for other opportunities in education upon his retirement. “I’m not saying goodbye. I’m not saying farewell,” he said Tuesday at the school board meeting. “And I will be engaged until my last day.”

emily.chappell@carrollcountytimes.com