Mark A. Edwards.

His Ever-Presence Instills New Confidence

If you're looking for the pulse of the classroom in the Henrico County, Va., schools, look no further than the superintendent for the vital signs.

During each of his first two years overseeing the district, Mark Edwards has made it a point to visit every classroom and host a faculty meeting at each school at least once annually. That's no small feat given that Virginia's 2nd largest (and growing) school system has, at the moment, 2,400 classrooms and 57 instructional sites.

But the road regimen is spinning off much-coveted dividends for Edwards, who typically schedules his first-hand, classroom data collections first thing in the morning. "1 do subscribe to engaged leadership, not by wandering around but by wandering. ... If a parent calls me about a school, I can say, 'I've been in that school. What classroom is it you want to talk about?"'

Earlier this year, as Henrico's school board asked about the status of a planned technology initiative at the middle school level, Edwards was able to report authoritatively without notes or assistance from aides based on his hour-long observation just that day of a third-grade computer lesson that integrated science and math. On another school visit, the superintendent noticed a lack of adult supervision between classes at one of the district's comprehensive high schools. At that evening's board meeting, he was well-versed to argue the need for additional staffing.

Edwards' handle on what's happening in the classroom plays well outside the boardroom, too. Says Susie Roush, president of a parent advisory group: "He's been there, he sees it, he talks with the teachers, he wants the principals involved--not behind closed doors. He's connected not by memos but in person."

Adds Robert Hall, who as chair of the school board reviews teachers' year-end feedback forms about Edwards: "Teachers feel they have a superintendent who really cares about them."

Edwards, a 44-year-old native of Roanoke, Va., came in 1994 to the Henrico district, which surrounds Richmond but does not include the city's schools. He earlier spent two years as superintendent in Danville on Virginia's southern border and two years as a central-office administrator overseeing elementary schools in Raleigh, N.C.

In a short time, the superintendent has infused a new spirit into a once-sluggish district. Most academic measures in Henrico have started an upward climb. This fall's SAT report showed average gains of 11 points on math and 8 points on verbal skills on a test taken by 68 percent of the senior class. On the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, students last spring produced the district's highest scores ever in 10 of 16 categories.

Edwards says his top priority now is to maintain the momentum.

Observers contend the superintendent's accessibility and visibility in all corners of the 38,300-student district have ensured follow-through on his initiatives. These include a new employee evaluation system known in Henrico as a professional growth plan and a no-nonsense disciplinary approach.

The evaluation system, which applies to all professional and support staff, relies on self-initiated improvement. "We're sending a message to veteran professionals that it's not necessary to use a regulatory checklist, that we have trust and confidence in you," Edwards says.

While describing the district's redefined code of conduct as "fairly traditional" in terms of content, Edwards has seen to it that the code's provisions are enforced vigorously and consistently. At the same time, the district has expanded its options for misbehaving students. An alternative program for middle schoolers will double its capacity this year.

Meanwhile, the $30 million infusion in systemwide technology initiatives under Edwards' direction has given the district a high profile in that arena. The National School Boards Association selected Henrico as one of three districts with the most far-reaching computer applications in the classroom, and the district was invited to make five presentations at a national conference on instructional technology this fall.

The superintendent earned the ultimate vote of confidence this summer. Henrico's first-time elected school board granted Edwards a four-year extension of his contract, just as superintendent search consultants have begun to buzz overhead.