Dr. David Clendening has been superintendent of Franklin Community School Corporation since 2009. Before becoming a superintendent, he served Goshen Community Schools as a middle school assistant principal and principal and then the district’s executive director.
Franklin Community Schools is a district of nearly 5,000 students and includes five elementary schools, an intermediate school, a middle school and a high school, plus a developmental preschool and a Cub Academy preschool for three and four-year-old children. The district is one of the largest employers in Johnson County.
When the district lost $21 million to property tax caps between 2010 and 2020 Clendening led the district to find ways to operate more efficiently and was determined not to let the revenue loss limit academic successes. As a result, the district earned more A letter grades during that time than any other time in its history.
Clendening is a graduate of Indiana University and earned advanced degrees from Butler University and Indiana State University. He is a past president of the South Central Study Council, former executive board chair of the Central Indiana Education Services Center and past board president of the Franklin Boys and Girls Club.
Past AASA Indiana Superintendent of the Year Winners:
2021 Indiana Superintendent of the Year: Kent Deckoninck
2020 Indiana Superintendent of the Year: Philip Downs
About the Superintendent of the Year:
As a sponsor of the superintendent of the Year program, First Student wants to recognize these leaders in a special way this year, because of the Covid-19 pandemic and the disruption that has affected all education systems but also the innovative approaches that the superintendents and school districts addressed through radio, television, zoom and take-home packages. These superintendents are the very best in public education and are needed more than ever during this crisis.
About the Award:
The superintendent of the Year program, sponsored by First Student and AASA, The School superintendents Association, pays tribute to the talent and vision of the men and women who lead the nation’s public schools.
State level winners are selected on the following criteria:
- Leadership for Learning
- Communication
- Professionalism
- Community Involvement