AISD Superintendent Stiles Feels He’s Exactly Where He Was Meant To Be

By Toni Garrard Clay/AISD Communications Specialist

Blake Stiles began training for his job as Athens ISD superintendent when he was in elementary school. Of course, he didn’t know it at the time. Stiles’ mother was the secretary for the high school principal and the athletic director. His father was a firefighter who worked 24 on, 24 off.

“When I was in elementary school, on the days my dad was at work, I’dTride the bus to the high school and hang out there, usually with the principal in his office,” said Stiles. “He’s one of the biggest reasons I’m in this today. … He was my every-other-day dad.” By the time Stiles was in the seventh grade, he had a career plan established: become a teacher and coach, and eventually move into administration.

After graduating high school in his hometown of Quinton, Okla., Stiles earned a bachelor’s degree from Northeastern State University, where he met his future wife, Claudia Williams.

Stiles’ career in education began in Honey Grove, Texas. It was a 2A school at the time, and he taught social studies and coached football, basketball, baseball, track and powerlifting. “I knew every kid in school and liked it that way,” he said.

Stiles and his wife moved next to the Houston area, where she taught, and he taught and coached in Channelview. They both earned their master’s degrees at the University of Houston during that time. (Stiles is currently at work on his doctoral dissertation.) After the birth of their first child, the couple decided to move closer to family, and Stiles took a job as the head track coach/assistant football coach in Paris, Texas.

“That first year in Paris, I’d see my newborn daughter (Taylor) awake for about two hours on Sunday morning, and that’s the only time I’d see her awake the whole week,” he said. “That’s when I started thinking it was time to move toward administration.”

Stiles was soon after hired as the assistant high school principal at Howe, Texas. He spent two years in that position and another six as principal. “There was about a two-year process of really missing the classroom and the coaching side of the job,” Stiles recalled. “In fact, I would still enjoy being in the classroom.”

He remembers fondly his time as assistant principal. “In that position, you have to deal with negative things, but you’re still with the kids the majority of the day,” he said. “I felt like I made a difference every day.”

Mrs. Stiles, who serves as assistant principal at South Athens Elementary School, said one of her husband’s strengths is his ability to interact and connect with others, whatever their age. “Even in that disciplinary role, the kids respected him and listened to him. … Because he has great relationships with people. He doesn’t make decisions from emotion. He’s always calm, and I think people respect his decisions.”

In 2011, Dr. Robert Steeber, who worked at one of Howe’s neighboring school districts, was hired as the superintendent at Athens ISD. “He gave me a call and asked me to apply for the assistant superintendent’s job in Athens. So I did; he hired me; then a year later, he left,” said Stiles. Already liking what they saw, the district trustees chose Stiles as Steeber’s successor in October of 2012.

“We’ve been more than pleased with the decision to hire Mr. Stiles. He’s exceeded our expectations,” said Rob Risko, president of the board of trustees. “We’ve been able to make improvements on facilities that we’re paying for with cash, and we’ve seen improvements in the classroom. … He’s also a man of high integrity. Will he do the right thing when nobody’s looking? Yes. He does that.”

Stiles describes his relationship with the board as excellent. “I feel very fortunate that the eight of us are on the same page,” he said. “It makes it easier for me to make decisions knowing that the board is focused on the same goal I am. They lay out their vision and then allow me to do my job. We all want kids who can be successful adults, who walk across the stage at graduation college or work ready.”

The path toward that goal does not always look the same to everyone. So when the time comes for decision-making, Stiles relies on a tried-and-true litmus test.

“I know it’s not possible to make everyone happy with critical decisions,” said Stiles. “So I focus on one thing: What is going to be best for our students? Once that’s determined, making the decision isn’t hard.”

Stiles’ inclination is to point to others for the gains the district has made in the past few years: his administrative team, the school board, the campus leadership and the teachers. “My belief is that the best thing I can do to help this district is to hire good people and put good people in the right places,” he said. “Find the stars and let them shine.”

As a result of that practice, he said, test scores have improved, personnel is stronger, and community support for the school district is “far greater” than it was just two or three years ago. Stiles is committed to continued improvements. Among the items on his and the trustees’ radars are state testing scores (“They’ve gotten better, but they’re still not where we want to be”) and additional facilities improvements.

“I want the children in this district to have a similar experience to mine as a student,” he said. “I enjoyed my school years; there were good life experiences and friendships along with the instruction. I want more for them than academics alone. I want our students to look back and be proud they were Hornets.”

Included among the some 3,300 students in the district are two of his own. Taylor is a seventh grader at Athens Middle School, and Jaxson is a third-grader at South Athens Elementary. Stiles and his wife say they wouldn’t want their children anywhere else.

“Coming here was absolutely the right decision,” he said. “I enjoy what I’m doing. I love that my wife works in this district and my kids are in school here. It feels like home, and we’re a part of the community.”