Posted 11:41 pm Thursday, December 13, 2012
Send to Kindle
TISD one step from selecting Mooring
After serving Tyler ISD in numerous roles over the past few years, Gary Mooring is one step away from getting the top post.
The TISD board of trustees on Wednesday named Mooring as its lone finalist for the superintendent post. It was a 6-0 vote with trustee Shirley Jordan not in attendance.
The district must wait 21 days before officially hiring him per Texas Government Code.
Mooring has served as the district's interim superintendent since August, when former Superintendent Dr. Randy Reid left for Keller ISD.
However, his experience with the district dates back to 2006 and he has held multiple positions in TISD, most on an interim basis, since then.
Board members praised Mooring's leadership, his community involvement and his experience among the reasons they selected him for the position.
"Having somebody that's committed to our community is really a nice thing," Board President Michelle Carr said during the special called board meeting. "To know that Tyler is home to you I think really brings a whole other level of comfort. We're very pleased to name you as the (lone) finalist."
Mooring said after the meeting that he was honored and humbled by the selection and the support he has from the board.
"Being able to come back as a superintendent and make a contribution to this community ... it's just a unique opportunity that I feel like I have, and I'm very happy that you made this decision," he said after the announcement was made.
Mooring comes to the table with almost 30 years of education experience, according to a TISD news release.
He has worked as a superintendent of two school districts -- Hutto ISD and Bishop Consolidated ISD.
He also worked as a deputy superintendent, principal, assistant principal and teacher.
Upon retiring from Hutto ISD in 2005, he continued working in education first as a field service agent for the Region XIII Education Service Center, then as deputy superintendent for TISD and later interim superintendent in 2006.
He also served TISD as interim executive director for special programs, interim transportation director, and consultant to develop the district's operations manual, according to the news release.
In 2010, he joined Tyler Junior College as director of dual credit, a position he held before coming to TISD for his latest stint as interim superintendent.
He also has worked in the Jacksonville and Pflugerville school districts.
Mrs. Carr said it was this depth and variety of experience that really appealed to trustees.
Eight people applied for the superintendent position, which was posted for three weeks, she said.
"We reviewed all of the resumes, and none of the candidates had really close to the qualifications Gary had or the depth of experience," she said.
She said of the candidates who did have superintendent experience it was with much smaller school districts.
Mooring's experience working in East Texas, which included about 11 years with Jacksonville ISD, and outside the area gives him good perspective, she said.
The board plans to vote on Mooring's contract during the Jan. 14 workshop. They will set goals for him next month as well.
