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Buster Evans

The Georgia School Superintendents Association's committee charged with selecting the 2012 Superintendent of the Year has announced the names of the four finalists for this year's award, the winner of which will be named in December. The four finalists are:

• Mr. Chris Erwin, Superintendent, Banks County Schools
• Dr. L. C. "Buster" Evans, Superintendent, Forsyth County Schools
• Dr. Emily Lembeck, Superintendent, Marietta City Schools
• Mr. Will Schofield, Superintendent, Hall County Schools

“We are thrilled for Dr. Evans to receive this outstanding recognition. He is truly worthy of the honor because he is dedicated to improving public education for every student, teacher and parent in Forsyth County and across Georgia,” stated Tom Cleveland, Chairman of the Forsyth County Board of Education. “Dr. Evans envisions new and innovative goals for us to achieve, and is not afraid to forge to unknown territories to do what is best for students. In addition to continuing the high quality of educational opportunity well recognized in Forsyth County, Dr. Evans led our district with increased SAT scores, higher graduation rates, and the creation of the R4 Digital Dashboard that reports organizational performance indicators.”

The four Superintendent of the Year finalists were chosen from among a field of twenty-two superintendents who had been nominated, three-fourths of them placed in nomination by the members of their local boards of education. Dr. Evans was nominated by each member of his Board of Education and Cabinet, as well as his 35 school principals.

“The four finalists will now complete a lengthy document prepared by the American Association of School Administrators -- an ‘application’ of sorts -- and submit it for a second round of judging,” shared Hebert Garrett, Executive Director of the Georgia School Superintendent Association. “The winner, who will represent Georgia in the national competition, will be named during the December 2, 2011 Awards Luncheon that is part of the annual Georgia School Boards Association/ Georgia School Superintendents Association's Winter Conference at the Waverly Hotel in Cobb County.”

Dr. Evans joined Forsyth County Schools in 2007. Prior to that he served as superintendent of Bleckley County School System for 10 years. As a 2007 finalist for Georgia Superintendent of the Year, Dr. Evans has served as the president of the Middle Georgia School Superintendent's Association, chair of the Georgia School Superintendents Association and president of the Georgia Association of Educational Leaders, which is Georgia’s largest educational leadership organization. He was appointed by Governor Sonny Perdue to serve as a trustee of the Georgia Teachers Retirement System (TRS), where currently serves as chairman. Dr. Evans also serves on the Education Funding Study Commission by appointed from Governor Nathan Deal.