Jeffrey Collier, Superintendent, Au Gres-Sims School District, Au Gres, Mich.

Michigan: Leaders Matter 

Nominated By: Christopher A. Wigent, Executive Director, Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators

Jeffrey Collier, Superintendent, Au Gres-Sims School District, Au Gres, Mich.

https://www.ags-schools.org/

Superintendent Jeffrey Collier (https://www.ags-schools.org/superintendent-s-message–11) has guided the Au Gres-Sims School District to become known as a “Destination District” and  “public school with a private school feel” for its combined strength in academic achievement and school experience. The district’s commitment to literacy has led to the highest third and fourth  grade ELA proficiency scores in its  region for two consecutive years on the annual state-wide M-STEP assessments.

To mitigate the limited resources of a small rural school district, he has built partnerships and created granted program opportunities for district students. Au Gres-Sims was the first school district on the Lake Huron shoreline to provide a sustainable 1:1 program for student provision of take-home Chromebooks and has provided more dual enrollment collegiate course opportunities than the entire partnering Intermediate School District combined, since 2017.

The district invests in its  staff through professional development and instructional resources/supports to enhance  the student’s learning experience. Au Gres-Sims is a progressive district that is recognized statewide and nationally for consistently and proactively modeling best educational practices using data-driven research and advanced instructional technology.

Collier is an ambassador for education and a champion of student-centric, experiential and progressive learning cultures. He is an effective leader who constantly challenges purpose and continually asks “what if?” Jeff has established positive relationships, trust, high expectations  and transparency that focuses on every student, every day. He created a continuous story-telling campaign that has helped brand and communicate the educational excellence of the district while also promoting positive enrollment trends and professional staff attraction and retention.

Collier  advocates thoughtful, innovative leadership designs which focus on breaking through barriers to build vibrant cultures of learning and has fostered key academic partnerships with entities across the state and nationally to promote educational opportunities for students.

Exemplars of Leadership:

• Demonstrated leadership and results in promoting literacy in rural community including significant commitment to the ELA.
• Developed strong partnerships with community to enhance the limited resources of this rural community.
• Uncompromising data-driven commitment to modeling and leading instruction including advancing technology applications.
• Aggressive advocacy for the support of schools, professional development of staff, and creating a positive and productive environment for students.

To learn more about the superintendents profiled in AASA’s Leaders Matter campaign, visit http://aasacentral.org/leadersmatter/. To join the conversation via Twitter, please access #LeadersMatter.