When classes commence Aug. 5 it will mark the beginning of Dr. Brian Ridley’s 25th year in education and first as a superintendent.
Ridley, 49, was approved by the Gilmer County Board of Education Monday, July 19, to be the district’s next superintendent. Ridley was one of 29 candidates who applied and the search took place over a 10-week span.
Ridley and wife Carmi arrive in Ellijay from Haralson County. They have been married for 19 years and have five children and two granddaughters. Their youngest child, Raven, is entering her senior year of high school.
“I’ve had my eye on Gilmer for awhile,” Ridley said. “My family has vacationed in the mountains and my mother has a place in Helen. I’m familiar with the north Georgia mountains, and Gilmer has always been attractive to me, and when I saw it was available I couldn’t help myself.
“This is a good school system with a nice community. I felt like my personality would fit well here. I didn’t know (former superintendent) Dr. (Shanna) Downs, but I have friends who do. So, I was a little familiar with the culture of the school district and overall feel of the northern mountain communities.”
Ridley is an avid music fan and has been playing semiprofessionally since he was 15. As a bass guitarist, he previously took the stage with “Big Band Theory,” a community jazz band based in Carroll and Haralson counties.
He also noted that over the years he has developed an interest in horology and considers himself a “wrist-watch enthusiast.”
“Although that is not very interesting to most people,” Ridley said before adding, “And (I’m) not (referring to) particularly expensive watches either, but interesting watches. But music has always been my lifelong interest.”
Music led to Ridley’s first job in education when he became a music teacher in Taylor County in 1996. He was Taylor High’s band director for a year, Bremen High’s for six years and spent one year as assistant band director at Armuchee High.
Ridley became a building-level administrator by 2006. He spent seven years as the principal at Haralson County Middle and one year in the same role at West Haralson Elementary. He was also Haralson Middle’s assistant principal for three years.
From ’16-’21, Ridley served as Haralson County’s assistant superintendent.
“At the district level, I think I learned a lot more about how to take ideas and scale them,” Ridley said. “As a principal, I could come up with an idea, bring my assistants in the room and go out and get it done. It doesn’t work that way at the district level. Here you have to build it out a little bit before you can take it to the people.”
Ridley plans to deploy the same strategy in Gilmer that has served him well over the last 24 years.
“I’m a team builder,” he said. “I’ve had success in my career, but it has been because of my ability to build strong committed teams to bring the right people together to accomplish a task.
“As a middle school principal, I was put in charge of a state-directed school. Within two years, we went from a state-directed school — after eight years of not making AYP (adequate yearly progress) — to (achieving) AYP. The way we turned around that school, aside from state support, was by building a good team. I’ve followed that model throughout my administrative career.”
Similar to Haralson, Gilmer is a charter district. There is a governance team at each school and they are made up of teachers, parents and community stakeholders. They work collaboratively with the board of education to “create a better understanding of and mutual respect for each other’s concerns, and share ideas for school improvement.”
“I’m a big believer of bringing not just parental involvement, but transparency is important,” Ridley said. “In a lot of communities, it’s important for school districts to be open and transparent about everything we do.”
When asked about the components of a successful district, Ridley said, “We have to focus on relationships. There has to be a high level of trust between parents, the community and the school district. Because when there isn’t, it bogs down everything the district tries to do. It gets in the way of what schools are there to accomplish.
He added, “The most successful districts are the ones that are extremely good at communicating with the public and making sure information is available so parents and community stakeholders can see what’s going on.
“Second of all, you have to focus on instruction. At the end of the day, we’re a learning organization. That’s what we’re here to do. If you don’t have a good instructional supervision program and a good way to support grade instruction, you’re doomed to fail. Those are the two most important items you have to focus on.”
Ridley’s vision for Gilmer also includes strengthening bonds outside of the classroom.
“I’d like to do what I can to help Gilmer develop our economy responsibly (in a way) that doesn’t exploit or change this small-town feel or setting because it’s beautiful; it’s perfect here,” Ridley said. “There are ways we can grow our economy through education and through supporting local businesses that can preserve that and bring more prosperity to not just Gilmer but the surrounding region as well. I want to create better connections with the business community and local stakeholders.
“One of the best things Gilmer has going is the people. We have a high-functioning board, and I’ve been super impressed by those guys. I haven’t met all the teachers, but I’ve been very impressed with everyone at the district level. This is a very competent team. I’m getting to know the building administrators and they seem to be very committed and we’re going to continue to work with that.”
Ridley spent his first week on the job under the guidance of assistant superintendent Kim Cagle, who served as interim superintendent during the hiring process. They made their way to the county’s five schools last week so Ridley could get the lay of the land and meet administrators and staff.
“Kim has been very gracious about showing me the ropes and introducing me to everybody,” Ridley said. “She’s been bringing me up to speed on jobs we have in the hopper that need to be handled as school gets started. That’s our first priority, to get school off to a great start and make sure the kids are taken care of. I’ve been learning as I go.
“I’d like the community to know that I’m really happy to be here. This is a fantastic place, and I knew it would be.”