Elect Ronnie McGehee Superintendent of Madison County Schools

In 1995, my wife of 31 years, Jodie, our daughter Jess, and I were looking to settle down in a safe community with a good school system. We selected Madison because we had been members of Madison United Methodist since 1986 and had a desire to be closer to worship. We still attend church there. Jess began her education at Madison Avenue Elementary. At that time, I was Principal at Northwest Rankin High School.

In 1997, Mike Kent and I met to discuss his move to Madison Central High School as Principal, and my thoughts on transferring there to assist him. In 1999, Mike was elected Superintendent and I became lead principal at MCHS. I joined the county office in 2000 as Deputy Superintendent.

At that time, the Madison County School District had 7 school sites and a little more than 7,000 students. This fall we will open our 22nd school site, and anticipate about 12,000 students with 1,400 employees and a projected operating and maintenance budget of over $80 million. Our growth has been incredible because parents can and do trust us to provide a safe, secure educational environment where teachers teach; students learn; and administrators demand high performance.

I grew up in southwest Mississippi with a Dad who was a hard-charging union man at Armstrong. Daddy had a sixth grade education and my Mom went to school through the 11th grade. In my hometown of Natchez, education was a way out. I am a first generation college graduate, thanks to my older brother who in his senior year of high school, asked mom and dad if he could go to college at USM. My younger brother and I followed in his footsteps. I know first-hand the importance of public education, and I know that public education works well in Madison County.

Our District provides a first class educational environment and I plan to continue to expand upon our offerings and opportunities in order to prepare our students–your children and grandchildren–to be successful in the future. Over the past 12 years, you have allowed me the awesome responsibility of planning, designing and constructing multiple schools in multiple locations throughout our District. I now ask that you trust me to lead your children and this District into the next phase as we mature in our growth.

For 180 days each year, you entrust our school system with your most prized possession–your children. I know your expectations of how our teachers, administrators and staff should perform daily; and I know that you support excellence.

The Superintendent of our county leads an organization of over 1400 employees responsible for educating 12,000 students with a budget of $80 million a year, and on a daily basis, is involved with a multitude of county and city groups–the board of supervisors, the sheriff, mayors of the cities, police chiefs, firemen, aldermen, emergency management personnel, chambers of commerce, economic development boards and initiatives–in addition to elected state officials–the House of Representatives, Senators, the Governor, Lt. Governor and last but not least, the State Superintendent of Education. I believe we need someone as Superintendent who has already been in meetings with these leaders, has a cooperative working relationship with them, and understands that decisions are not made in a vacuum. Education impacts everyone in Madison County.

I feel that my 34 years as an educator has provided me with the understanding, experience and qualifications necessary to serve as Madison County’s Superintendent of Education, and I humbly ask for your vote on November 8th.