The longtime Falcon School District 49 transportation director recently announced her retirement.If approved by the school board at Thursday’s March 8 meeting, Cindy Hardin will retire from the district at the end of the school year in June.”It was the ideal opportunity for her,” D-49 Spokeswoman Stephanie Wurtz Meredith said Tuesday March 6.Hardin has worked in D-49 for 10 years, and she worked for 15 years for the transportation department in Academy School District 20.She will receive a monetary incentive for retiring early. According to a plan approved by the school board in late January, those who retire early will receive a lump sum payment in the amount of forty percent of the employee’s 2011-2012 annual base pay calculated from the last day of employment.Hardin led the department as the district started charging for bus service this school year.The district is confident of the leadership in place to make sure things still run effectively after Hardin retires, Meredith said.