When Chris Trotter learned his hometown school district needed a superintendent, he reached out to two Winnsboro ISD board members with a simple offer. He was retired, he had experience running school districts, and he was willing to come home and help.

Trotter, a 1985 Winnsboro High School graduate, had spent more than three decades working in public education, including three years as superintendent at Cleveland ISD. He had retired from full-time school administration and was doing consulting work when he contacted the district.

He took over as interim superintendent July 7, bringing with him a familiarity with the community and a desire to give back to the town where he grew up. Trotter arrived during a difficult time for Winnsboro ISD. The district had faced months of scrutiny following the arrests of several administrators, employees and a school board member in connection with an investigation involving allegations of educator misconduct with a student. He said his first order of business was to help employees get ready for a new school year. “The first thing was to heal,” Trotter said.

He spent his first two weeks meeting individually with staff members, asking about their goals, the district’s biggest obstacles and what they believed needed attention. He wasn’t necessarily looking to make changes. He wanted to find out what was working and where improvements could be made.

Trotter said he found employees who were still dealing with the events of the previous school year. He worked with campus administrators to adjust staff development activities before school started, giving employees time to talk and prepare for the year ahead. “

We could not start school without breaking the iceberg and addressing the elephant in the room,” Trotter said.

Once those conversations took place, Trotter turned his attention to the work of running the district.

FROM THE CLASSROOM TO THE SUPERINTENDENT’S OFFICE

Trotter didn’t originally plan to become an educator, despite growing up with a mother who taught school. After graduating from Winnsboro, he played baseball at Navarro College before transferring to Texas A&M University.

He tried engineering and accounting but hadn’t settled on a career. While officiating high school football games, he met a man who worked with the Boys and Girls Club in Bryan. When Trotter told him he was struggling to decide what to do with his life, the man offered him a job. Trotter began running youth sports programs and tutoring children in math and science. He soon changed his major to education.

His career began in Birdville ISD, where he taught and coached at the middle school level. He later moved into high school coaching and administration, serving at schools in Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Hurst-Euless-Bedford, Denison and Comal ISDs.

He spent 10 years in administration at Tomball ISD before becoming superintendent at Cleveland ISD. Trotter said much of his career has involved working with schools that needed academic improvement. He credits experienced mentors with teaching him how to identify problems and put systems in place to address them.

At Cleveland, he said the district improved from nearly failing to a B rating in two years. He believes many problems can be addressed by looking closely at how schools operate, whether that means examining curriculum, hiring practices or the way teachers use their classroom time.

MAKING EVERY MINUTE COUNT

One of Trotter’s first instructional priorities at Winnsboro was helping teachers think differently about time.

He explained that something as simple as reducing a classroom transition from five minutes to two minutes can add up to days of additional instruction over a school year.

He also wants teachers to check students’ understanding throughout a lesson rather than waiting until the end to find out who needs additional help.

Trotter, a former math teacher, said short assessments can help teachers identify students who understand a concept and those who need more instruction.

He typically spends his Thursday mornings visiting campuses, observing teachers and occasionally working with students. During a recent visit to a sixth-grade science classroom, he helped a student struggling with measurements while the teacher worked with another. By the end of the lesson, he said, the students understood the material.

Trotter also believes campus principals need the freedom to make decisions. “I don’t micromanage principals,” Trotter said. He said his job is to provide support and guidance, stepping in when necessary but allowing principals to run their schools.

PREPARING STUDENTS FOR WHAT COMES NEXT

Trotter wants Winnsboro ISD to provide opportunities for students regardless of what they plan to do after graduation. That includes college, military service and career training.

He pointed to the district’s electrical, welding and robotics programs as examples of ways students can prepare for jobs while still in high school. He estimates that 16 to 18 students could be prepared for electrical work over the next two years, while another 15 or 16 may enter welding-related jobs.

He also wants students with disabilities to have opportunities to develop job skills and prepare for life after school. Trotter’s goal is “a pathway for every child.”

Academically, Trotter hopes to improve campus accountability ratings and eventually see Winnsboro become an A-rated district.

He also wants to make sure the district’s administrative procedures are clear and up to date, particularly in business operations and human resources.

The school board recently extended his contract, allowing him to continue working on those priorities into the spring semester.

The district has hired Casey Donovan as assistant superintendent over business and human resources and is working to fill a curriculum coordinator position.

Trotter said he wants to leave the district with procedures that will continue working long after his time as superintendent ends.

GIVING BACK TO WINNSBORO

Trotter and his wife, Rachel, have been married 22 years and have two adult children, Kaylee and Ian. Rachel also works in public education, and the couple has an educational consulting business.

Although Trotter had retired from full-time administration, he said Winnsboro was the one district where he was willing to return to the superintendent’s office.

He still remembers moving to Winnsboro with his mother, Linda, and younger sister. His mother worked for the district as a teacher and librarian, and Trotter spent summers working at the swimming pool and mowing yards around town.

He also remembers the men who stepped in to help after his parents separated.

Among them were coach Charles Phelps, youth minister Wilburn Hettich, retired teacher and coach Billy Edwards and banker Gordon Wilkinson.

Trotter recalled times when his mother struggled to pay the bills. Wilkinson, who was president of a local bank, sometimes gave him money and told him to mow his yard while he was on vacation.

It was a way of helping without making the family feel as though they were accepting charity. Trotter said those men provided guidance and support at a time when he needed it.

Since returning, he has had the opportunity to reconnect with Hettich, including spending time visiting and praying together. Those relationships, he said, are a big part of why he wanted to return.

“To see somebody that picked me 40 years ago as a 17, 18-year-old lost young man with no direction; and now to come back and to give back to my community that gave me so much. That’s why I’m here," Trotter said.