The Ames School District recently welcomed Iowa’s first black superintendent as he begins to deal with the challenges of running a school system.

Ray Richardson edged out three other finalists from around the Midwest to become the new Ames School District superintendent.

Last September he became interim superintendent.

Richardson said he will accomplish three goals as superintendent.

The first is to balance the yearly district budget during a time of cutbacks.

“We need to make sure the budget is financially solvent and that we live within our means,” Richardson said.

“According to [school] board policy, the budget is my responsibility. I can seek all the input I want, but the bottom line will have my signature.”

Richardson said his second goal is to maintain Ames’ academic standards.

“We don’t want to diminish in this area at all,” he said. “We need to make sure that we are catering to the needs of all students and not just the majority.”

Richardson also said he wants to ensure special-needs children also gain an education from the Ames schools.

“We don’t want to lift one up and have another fall,” he said. “It’s education for all.”

School Board President Barbara Guy said Richardson’s passion for each individual student in the district is obvious.

“It’s easy to meet the needs of programs of groups of kids,” she said. “To try and make sure everyone is accounted for is not easy. [Richardson] had a strong sense of purpose to meet the needs of each student.”

Richardson said he has several challenges to meet in the coming years.

For one, he said, students are overcrowding the Ames secondary schools.

Richardson said he plans to meet his goals through increased communication with “stakeholders” in the community.

“We need to work cooperatively and communicate well with all our stakeholders, such as Ames city government and Iowa State University,” he said. “It’s my responsibility to come up the final decision, but I will get input from these sources.”

Guy said Richardson has increased the relationship with stakeholders during the months he served as interim superintendent.

“Under Ray’s guidance, the communication between the district, the school board and parents and teachers has increased,” Guy said.

The School Board selected Richardson from four candidates March 18.

Guy said Richardson had the right talents for the job.

“Every candidate had their own set of skills and assets to bring to this position,” Guy said. “We chose Ray because he was the best match for what we needed – not only in the immediate sense but also in future years.”

Guy said Richardson also brings an understanding of the school district and its financial state to the position.

“We’ve made great strides on [Richardson’s] list of goals,” Guy said. “We are answering the financial questions in a quick manner.”

Richardson, a former Waterloo School District administrator, said he came to Ames for the position of Deputy Superintendent in 1998.

Richardson, who is originally from Bettendorf, said he had always planned on a career in education, although not necessarily one in administration.

“I was going to be in education but as a teacher or coach,” he said. “I have my certification in football, basketball, track and baseball.

“It’s just that everything that occurred pointed me in the direction of administration.”