When it comes to education, newly-
appointed Rockwall ISD Superintendent 
Dr. John Villarreal has a knack for fully 
immersing himself in the lives of his fellow 
teachers and students. 

Prior to becoming superintendent for 
Rockwall ISD in May 2016, Dr. Villarreal 
served one of the highest performing school 
districts in the state – Carroll ISD – as 
the Assistant Superintendent of Student 
Services beginning in Oct. 2011. Dr. 
Villarreal planned, organized and facilitated 
the district’s recent strategic plan. He has 
also worked with the Temple ISD, serving 
as Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum 
and Instruction, high school principal and 
International Baccalaureate head of school, 
elementary principal, academic coordinator, 
Teen Involvement teacher, high school 
counselor and coach. He holds a Doctor of 
Education in Educational Administration 
from Tarleton State University, a Master of 
Education in Educational Administration 
from Tarleton State University, a Master 
of Education in Counseling and Human 
Development at Hardin-Simmons 
University, along with a Bachelor of 
Science from Hardin-Simmons University.

Blue Ribbon News Editor Austin Wells 
caught up with Rockwall ISD’s new 
superintendent to learn more about his 
background and all the good things he plans 
to bring to the fast-growing school district. 

What does it mean to you to be the new 
Superintendent for Rockwall ISD?

I think it’s a huge opportunity and a huge 
honor to be a part of a successful family 
like Rockwall ISD. There are a ton of 
traditions here, an expectation of excellence 
demonstrated by our students’ performance, 
whether it’s athletics or academics. It’s 
definitely awesome to be a part of that. 

Talk about the support you’ve received 
from the district – from parents/
teachers/school board members – 
since becoming the Superintendent.

I think I had 100+ new followers on my 
Twitter account, folks that were welcoming. 
It’s been great! My first few months were 
spent going out to different departments, 
and folks were friendly. They have a lot of 
pride in the district. They also recognized 
that we are a growing district and are 
doing all they can to meet the needs of that 
student growth, and provide an experience 
for kids that’s excellent. I appreciate our 
School Board and how they’ve worked 
with my family during our transition, and 
they’ve been very supportive as we work 
to move in to our new home.

You really immersed yourself in the 
communities of Southlake and Temple, 
getting involved in the Chamber of 
Commerce, the Kiwanis Club and the 
Rotary Club. How do you plan to get 
involved in the Rockwall community?

I plan to be available. I want to shake as 
many hands as possible. A good day’s a day 
when I can shake a lot of hands. If I don’t 
then I didn’t get out of the office enough. 

More and more families continue to 
relocate to the Rockwall community, 
and one of the biggest reasons 
they often give for moving here is 
Rockwall’s reputation for having an 
excellent school district. Of course, 
more families coming in also means a 
growing student population. How do 
you as Superintendent plan to handle 
that incoming growth?

I think the school district is in a great 
position to handle the incoming growth. 
The community was very gracious to 
approve a large bond. We are already in 
the phases of building our 14th elementary 
school here. The College and Career 
Academy will house students from our 
high schools, and we’re working on those 
processes as well. The bond itself puts the 
district in a great position to prepare for 
the growth of our student population. 

What’s your idea of an effective 
learning environment?

When learning occurs it’s two ways – 
there’s the presenter of the information and 
then you’ve got to hear the feedback. The 
feedback helps the presenter understand the 

gaps or the mastery of the learning that has 
been taught. I love seeing the students do 
rather than simply listen. The more they’re 
engaged, the more we see their problem-
solving skills and hear actual feedback from 
them. I think that adds the greatest value 
and gives you an example of a 
great learning environment. 

What are some things the school 
district is doing to help prepare 
students for life post-high school? 

Authentic learning is huge. When you have 
experiences in multiple courses, I think 
you’re better in terms of your depth of 
knowledge and authentic learning. All of 
that will be available at the new College 
and Career Academy, along with dual-
credit courses. Certifications will also be 
a part of that, so that way students can be 
workforce-ready and can even work on 
their associate’s degree or four-year degree 
while at the same time working with a 
certificate that they earned at the 
College and Career Academy. 

What are you most looking forward to 
in your new position?

I thrive being at the campuses and seeing 
kids learning. I enjoy seeing folks become 
empowered, and seeing them think and 
learn at a whole other level where they’re 
doing that together, and adding value to 
the system. I look forward to working with 
people, the camaraderie that comes with 
that, and being able to look back after a 

year and see people adding greater value 
to Rockwall ISD, rather that’s teachers 
thinking about innovation, administrators 
thinking about new processes, or a new 
academic service we’re offering students. 
All of that involves everyone becoming 
better than who they were today, and 
that’s also my goal: how can I be 
better tomorrow? 

You’re a father of three. What’s the 
coolest thing about being a dad?

The coolest thing about being a dad is 
preparing your kids for the world. They 
won’t live with me forever, and I think my 
responsibility as a dad is to prepare them 
for the world. Building confidence in my 
kiddos and teaching them how to treat 
people – all of those are fun opportunities. 
Having experiences with them that aren’t 
business or school-related, from family 
vacations to fishing to hunting, all of that is 
really important to me. For me, my kids are 
a gift, and it’s fun to be able to raise them 
and teach them things they need to know. 

Tell me something about yourself most 
people would be surprised to learn.

If you want to see the Superintendent of 
Rockwall ISD, you can report to The Harbor 
at 5:30 in the morning or Rockwall High 
School at 5:15 a.m. for a Camp Gladiator 
workout. I love being around young 
people who challenge me in my physical 
fitness. One of my passions is to realize 
as educators that we have to take care of 

GOOD THINKING

8

Back to School Edition 2016

BlueRibbonNews.com

Q&A WITH ROCKWALL 

ISD SUPERINTENDENT 

Dr. John Villarreal