A Mother's Advice Leads to Lofty Status.

From her earliest days, Gerry House never doubted which professional field would attract her extraordinary talents.

"My mother liked to tell how, when I was a young girl, I would put chairs in a row, gather up my four siblings and hold class. She gave me credit for teaching my younger brother and sister to read," says House, now commanding the limelight as 1999 National Superintendent of the Year.

During those formative years, growing up in racially segregated Patrick County, Va., on the state's border with North Carolina, House learned some important lessons that have served her well as a district superintendent of 14 years, the last seven in Memphis, Tenn.

House, then known as Geraldine Hagwood, attended the all-black, poorly funded Patrick Central High School, graduating in 1965 as class valedictorian. She says she never noticed the disparate circumstances of her schooling, claiming she was blinded by the excitement for learning instilled in her by dedicated teachers.

One of those early mentors, Ralph Tatum, who taught her high school math for four straight years, says he could foresee greatness in her future. He recalls his former student as much for her conscientious and caring behavior as for her sterling academic record.

Her mother, an elementary school teacher for 35 years, delivered a message that, House says looking back now, seems to underscore her steadfast belief that "All children can learn, no matter where they come from or which school they attend."

At the time, House was a newly minted classroom teacher, struggling to teach Shakespeare to mostly poor high school juniors in rural Henry County, Va., when, she says, "I told my mother that I was about to fail most of my students." Her mother replied: "Have you ever thought that their failure may signal your failure as well?"

"That lesson," House says, "has stayed with me--that a teacher does not stand apart from the learning process.

As superintendent of the 112,000-student Memphis system, House is seen as someone who reveres children. Associate Superintendent Barbara Jones puts it this way: "Her belief that every child deserves the best permeates every instructional, political and financial action she takes."

Under House's systematic approach to reform in the urban district, all 161 schools are required to select a redesign model developed by the New American Schools Corp. Early findings suggest that the first schools to adopt one of the models have pushed academic performance of their students somewhat higher than others.

The superintendent also has eliminated lower-level math and science options from the high school curriculum, meaning students must start now with pre-algebra and physical science.

While demanding more of site administrators, the superintendent also has given them the authority to be leaders in their schools--and not by her word alone.

"Just watching how she prepares herself when she comes before principals has been my model when I go before my faculty," says Elsie Bailey, principal at Booker T. Washington High School. "She never comes to us (principals) without delivering a quality, substantive example to show us how something should be done. She never says, 'This is the way to do it.' She simply does it and you know that that is the way it should be done."

In her previous superintendency in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro, N.C., district, House focused on narrowing a wide gap in performance between the middle-class children, most of them white, and minority youngsters.

House spent nearly two decades in the Chapel Hill district, beginning as a junior high school counselor. During her seven years as superintendent, she also was raising a young daughter and teenage son, pursuing her doctorate at University of North Carolina--and impressing those around her with how well she balanced personal and professional life.

"Gerry would pick up her daughter from after-school, fix dinner for the family and open a school board meeting at 7:30 p.m. with perfect composure, recalls Neil Pedersen, the district's assistant superintendent for support services at the time. "When she returned home around midnight, she'd complete the household chores and catch up on paperwork. I don't know exactly when she slept during the week, but I learned never to call her before noon on a weekend."

Jay Goldman is the editor of The School Administrator.

BIO STATS: GERRY HOUSE

Currently: superintendent, Memphis City Schools, Memphis, Tenn.

Earlier: superintendent, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City, N.C.

Age: 51

Greatest Influence on Career: My mother was my role model, not only as a teacher but as a human being.

Best Professional Day: While reading to a 1st-grade class, I noticed one little boy who just could not sit still. He kept looking over my shoulder, saying the words before I could. Finally, he jumped right into my lap and said, 'Let me do it! Let me do it!" He had just learned to read and could not contain himself.

Books at Bedside: The Bible, The Delany Sisters' Book of Everyday Wisdom by Sarah Louise Delany and Ghetto Schooling by Jean Anyon and William Julius Wilson 

Biggest Blooper: Once while speaking to a civic group, I noticed I was wearing one navy and one black shoe. I wonder if the audience was asking what kind of clown they invited to speak that day.

A Reason Why I'm an AASA Member: I've benefited tremendously from reading AASA publications, attending the conferences and networking with other AASA members.