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RICE CONSOLIDATED INDEPENDENT SCHOOLS
The Rice Consolidated Independent School District held a special Board of Trustees meeting on April 10 to discuss the retirement of Superintendent Bill Hefner and name his successor.
Rice High School Principal Kenny Center emerged as the lone finalist to take on the new position.
“I was thrilled upon hearing that I was named the Lone Finalist for the Superintendent position,” Center said, “Knowing that the Board of Trustees believes in me to lead the Rice CISD gives me the confidence that what I have been doing as a campus Principal has been felt throughout the District and that I will continue to stay true to my beliefs and to do what is best for our students.”
Following an interview during closed session, the School Board unanimously approved the impending promotion as they looked to promote someone within their system.
Center enters the new role with over 20 years of education experience, spending a large portion of his career with Medina Valley Independent School District. He joined RCISD in the summer of 2023 after working 13 years for MVISD. Starting his career with Premont Independent School District, Center also worked for Luling ISD and Lockhart ISD.
New Superintendent Center said that the first year of his tenure will be focused on familiarizing himself with the other schools in the district as he has only had experience with the high school as its principal. His main goals are to highlight and improve upon things the District currently does well, and he also hopes to “streamline processes” to help alleviate some of the administrative responsibilities for teachers.
Center
“I want to continue to build upon the great things that have been going on at Rice CISD and showcase these to the surrounding areas,” Center said, “...Overall, Rice CISD is doing great, and it will be my job to continue pushing forward and to continue to grow and promote the District.”
After starting his collegiate career as a student athlete at Ranger College, Center transferred to Texas A&M Kingsville where he continued to play baseball until he received his bachelor’s in biology in 2002. Center earned his master’s in educational leadership from Lamar University in 2012.
The new superintendent moves into a position that had long been occupied by Eagle Lake native and Rice High School graduate Hefner.
Hefner had the chance to spend his entire educational career within the county, with most of his time working with Rice Consolidated School District.
When Hefner first started taking the idea of retirement seriously, he understood that his replacement would have to be someone with new ideas and an understanding that the landscape surrounding education would drastically change in the coming future.
Superintendent Hefner played a large role in the selection of Center first as RHS principal, and now ultimately as the new superintendent. The two discussed Center’s desire to one day become a superintendent early in the new principal’s tenure with the district.
Hefner spent the following school year watching Center make strong decisions for the students at the district’s flagship high school. By the time Hefner had delivered his letter of retirement in February, he had developed a strong impression of Center’s ability and his commitment to the students.
“I knew watching him the past several months he would be a strong candidate to replace me I have complete confidence,” Hefner said, “While retirement was a big decision to me, I know that I am leaving the district in hands that will make it even better.”
The Board of Trustees and Hefner himself had always had a policy of promoting and elevating those within the system, and the same was true for the position of superintendent. The board posted the job solely for internal applicants in the RCISD system. A solid resume by Center along with a glowing recommendation by longtime district leader Hefner led to the decision as RCISD moves to a new era.
“Kenny has a wealth of knowledge; he’s creative,” Hefner said, “He has a tremendous amount of ideas... While he is a tremendous educator and leader, he’s an even better person.”
One of the new challenges of the era according to Hefner is the clear lack of support in terms of funding from the state. Limited funding for schools has become more of a hot topic in recent years regarding state education.
This new era of postcovid education at the same time of an AI movement presents plenty of other challenges for students and teachers. However, the school board and newly appointed Superintendent Center will move forward with confidence knowing that the school has battled through many difficulties in the past and will continue to do so.
