When the Columbia County School Board last week voted to hire Dr. Steven Flynt to be the next school superintendent, they broke with an unofficial tradition of hiring from within for the top spot.
What may have put Flynt at the top of the candidate list is his experience in managing the growth of a school system, that and the fact that his resume does not show him hopping from one system to another.
“I haven’t applied to any other school system except Columbia County,” he says. “Because of the growth, the number of schools that are going to be opening, the academic achievement of the students and some of the great things that are already going on, that was a tie and a fit, and I can add some value as well.”
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Flynt is currently an associate superintendent of Gwinnett County schools. Gwinnett County is the largest school system in Georgia, and a fast-growing one at that. Board members chose him over two other finalists, both of whom would have been inside hires. The other finalists were associate superintendent Penny Jackson and assistant superintendent Michele Sherman.
Flynt started his employment in Gwinnett County in 1994 and has moved up through there over the past 27 years to achieve the position of associate superintendent.
When discussing his reasons for going into education, Flynt admits that part of the motivation was because he had not been a model high school student himself.
“I wasn’t a bad student,” he says. “But it wasn’t until I got into college that I found ways to get excited about the content.”
Flynt says he enjoys acting as a mentor and helping kids find excitement in learning.
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Aside from his career as an educator, Flynt is an Eagle Scout and has served on the Northeast Georgia Executive Council of the Boy Scouts for many years.
Flynt is looking forward to moving his family to Columbia County and will take the reins from Dr. Carraway when she retires on June 30.
“It’s about the kids and ultimately every kid and getting them to their highest potential,” he says of his goal after becoming the superintendent.
Flynt earned an associate of arts in education at Young Harris College, a bachelor’s degree in biology from Lees-McRae College, a master’s in science education from Piedmont College and a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Georgia.
Scott Hudson is the Managing Editor of The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
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