MoCo Greets New School Superintendent

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The Montgomery County Board of Education officially approved Dr. Ronda Hightower as its new school superintendent on Monday, April 8, and the community welcomed the new leader during a meet and greet event on April 11.

Current Montgomery County Schools Superintendent Stan Rentz announced his resignation earlier this year, as he shared a letter with the Board of Education and attendees at the Board’s meeting on January 16. Rentz has served as the system’s superintendent since 2021.

Since the announcement, the Board of Education has met regularly to interview several candidates for the position and worked to narrow down the options. During the discussion at the most recent meeting on March 18, Board member Susan Beard made the motion to select Hightower as the final candidate. The motion was seconded by Board member John O’Conner and passed on a 4-1 vote, with Board member Pete Ward objecting to the proposal, as he shared he felt that Dr. Marvin Howard should be the final candidate.

Hightower’s hiring was officially approved during a called meeting on Monday, April 8, and marks the first time that the school system will have a full-time superintendent in a decade. She will begin transitioning from the Laurens County School System into this new role in June.

“There are a lot of mixed emotions, but mostly, I feel very humbled [and] I feel very honored,” she remarked. “This is a great school system. This ship is already heading in the right direction, and I just can’t wait to jump in the boat, grab a set of oars, and help us go even further, even faster. I am ecstatic about being able to be here.”

Having 26 years of experience in education, Hightower has become well respected for her contributions to education and her advocacy for literacy initiatives. She most recently served as the Laurens County Schools associate superintendent, where her colleagues praised her as a champion for education, noting her unwavering commitment to excellence and integrity.

“So, yes, I’m very passionate about literacy,” Hightower began. “As a teacher, I taught first and fifth grades. In first grade, I taught [students] how to read; in fifth grade, I taught them how to fall in love with reading and I’ve been a champion for literacy ever since. In my tenure as associate superintendent, I’ve been able to create a community literacy task force that now has over 25 members that now are faithful in coming to our biannual meetings and in fulfilling our vision in making literacy more visible and valued in Laurens County.

“I hope to bring that vision here as well. I would love for the community to rally around and realize it’s going to take more than our great teachers, loving schools, and great parents [to improve literacy]. It’s going to take all of us working together, as ‘Get Georgia Reading’ says, to make sure that all of our kids are reading on grade level or above by the end of third grade.”

Hightower spoke with community stakeholders, citizens, parents, and teachers at the Mount Vernon Community House on April 11, as the school system welcomed her aboard. The new superintendent will complete her tenure with Laurens County in June, but will continue to remain in close contact with Montgomery County as she learns more about the school system and prepares for the transition.

JOINING MONTGOMERY COUNTY – Dr. Ronda Hightower will succeed current Montgomery County Schools SuperintendentStan Rentz in June.