Christian Peterson
Reporter@riverbendnews.org
The superintendent is the top executive in a school district. It is his or her job to work out a school board’s vision by making decisions on everything from educational programs to the staff in the district. Superintendents constantly work with school leaders, teachers and the public to work out what is best for the children in their system; an incredibly long, tiring and stressful job for anyone. Ted Roush is the man who makes it look easy. Roush has been the Superintendent for the Suwannee County School District since November 2016.
“My background in education started in 1992 as a substitute teacher, here, in the Suwannee County School District,” Roush said. “Once completing college, I started my teaching career with the Taylor County School District during the 1994-95 school year, after completing my intern teaching experience at Taylor County High School. My first teaching experience was in a K-2 ESE/SED classroom at Perry Primary School. Following that experience, I worked the next eight years in the Columbia County School District, teaching middle school social studies at Lake City Middle School and then Fort White K-8 School. Beginning in 1998, I served as Assistant Principal at Fort White K-8 School and then as Assistant Principal at the new Fort White High School from 2000 to 2003. In June 2003, I was named Principal of my alma mater, Branford High School. I served as the Principal of Branford High for seven years, followed by five years as Principal of Suwannee High School. In July 2015, I became Assistant Superintendent of Administration for our district and was elected Superintendent of Schools in November 2016.”
Being a superintendent isn’t all just fun and games though, there are some real challenges. “At this current time, securing and retaining high quality personnel seems to be one of the biggest challenges,” Roush said. “Personnel across all categories of employees are difficult to find. Social media is also one of the biggest headaches, because folks want to find their information many times in sources not rooted in fact. Years ago, before the emergence of social media, things were more simple and better, not only for people in general, in my opinion, but there were far fewer distractions for our students.” However, that doesn’t mean the whole job is all stress and no fun. When asked for a single moment in his career he had to be proud of Roush said, “A single moment is hard to define. I would say being named my school's Teacher of the Year, in 1998, was an honor and humbling experience. Being able to return to my home high school as the Principal in 2003 was also an honor that ranks as probably the most gratifying.”
Another important aspect of being superintendent is implementing well thought out and beneficial ideas. It’s a job that requires constant improvement. “I very much want to see an accountability system for students, schools and districts, that does not judge or grade on a single moment in time,” Roush said. “So much happens during a school year other than testing for reading, math and so on. The student experience is so much richer than high stakes testing. Accountability is important and I am hopeful that the tide is starting to turn towards a more favorable approach to accountability. In Suwannee County, I want our programs to continue to grow and improve. From our rich elementary school experience, through middle-high school and into our own RIVEROAK Technical College, I want our school district to be seen as the "BEST CHOICE" for educational opportunities in the North Florida region.”
“One day, when I look back on my career, I want to be able to say that I served my home district well. I want to be able to say that I hopefully contributed and made more good decisions than bad ones,” Roush said. “I hope that I have been able to give back to a district that gave so much to me as a student. My hope is that we are building future leaders that will continue to propel our district to new heights in the years ahead. If I can, in this moment, be a part of helping secure the future of our District, I will feel like we have done a pretty good job.”
Being so heavily involved with education and the district, Roush knows it inside and out. Therefore, he knows that Suwannee is a great school for your kids. “I want the public to know that we are here for them and for ALL of our children. Most all of our folks come to work because they love what they do. We are here to make each child's experience the very best that it can be day to day. As a reminder, the single most important thing a parent can do, other than read to their child early in life, is to have them in school each and every day possible. A child's attendance is the single most impactful factor in determining what their educational outcomes would look like long-term.”
Roush described the Suwannee County School District's benefits as offering a wide variety of programs, including traditional, virtual, adult education and community education classes. “There is truly something for almost everyone,” Roush said. “Visit our website and contact us! We are here to help with all educational choice options!”