Burnsville's new school leader has followed his muse

Ask the Clinton, Iowa school board president how he feels about Superintendent Randall Clegg -- who is leaving to become the new Burnsville-Eagan-Savage superintendent -- and his list of attributes is positive but a little overwhelming.

He's great at curriculum. He got the community to vote for more school funds. And, oh yeah, he's a pilot. Did I mention he's the chairman of the local airport commission? He runs marathons. He's great at renovating schools. He directed the community band.

And he's a nice guy. A little quiet, but nice.

"He and I flew up to Des Moines to pick up my dog one day," said Jim Tuisl. "I had to call around to find a type of breed I wanted, and it was available in Des Moines, about 200 miles away. I didn't have time to drive there, so Dr. Clegg and I flew. I loved it. Here we were, shoulder to shoulder up against the windows in this little plane. It was great."

On Thursday night, , the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage school board plans to approve a contract with Clegg, who will take the job of retiring Superintendent Ben Kanninen this summer.

Clegg, 52, became a superintendent when he was 29 and has developed a reputation as an expert in curriculum and in how to serve low-income students and children of color.

And even though Clegg sold his plane a few years ago, Tuisl says Burnsville is lucky to have him.

"I was talking to a math specialist in the district today," Tuisl said. "She said 'I've been so sick thinking about him leaving. I knew he was going to go soon because he's going to find something bigger and better. But I hate to see him go because of the work that's been done here.' "

"They made music a passion"

Clegg grew up in Milwaukee. His father was an engineer, and his mother was a teacher. As a student at Hamilton High School, Clegg was in the band, the orchestra, the jazz band and the choir. He played the clarinet, the saxophone and the flute.

When it came time for college, it was a "toss up," he said, between pursuing a career in music or engineering. Music won.

"I thought I was halfway decent," he said, "and I thought I could make a viable career out of it. Any time I could play or sing, that was what it was all about. The more I could play or sing, the better."

Clegg attributes his desire to pursue a career in music education to his music teachers.

"They made music a passion," he said. "They made it enjoyable and fun, and I just felt like this was an opportunity to give back the same way."

His first job was as a middle and high school band director in DeSoto, Wis., where he "had a lot of fun." The toughest part, he said, was learning to understand the way the school system operates and the politics of education in a school with a big football program.

"I was pretty naive when I stepped into the classroom the first time," he said. "People didn't place the same value on the band as I thought they should. And football was king. It had a huge, huge tradition in the community, and I was totally unaware of it. It's just one of the things you learn when you start your career. There is a pecking order."

"Scared to death"

Clegg got his first superintendent job at the age of 29 in the Dumont, Iowa, district. Not only was he the superintendent, but he was the K-12 principal in the district of 234 children.

"I was scared to death," he said. "There were so many things to be thinking about. I learned a lot. A lot."

But experience in a small district is crucial for a superintendent, he said, because you're forced to wear so many hats. He was responsible for all the district operations, from designing bus routes and managing food service to designing the curriculum.

He decided to pursue a superintendent job at the time because "it seemed like a good challenge."

"I applied, was interviewed, and the board offered a 29-year-old kid a job," he said.

Twenty-three years after his first job as a superintendent, Clegg will be running a district with more than 10,500 students in it. And he definitely won't be the only administrator.

What attracted the Burnsville school board to Clegg was his experience in developing curriculum -- he does that with many districts now as a consultant through an educational organization -- and his experience with increases in poverty and diversity, which he has dealt with in Clinton.

His work has significantly narrowed the achievement gap in the Clinton district, according to Vicki Roy, the school board chairwoman in Burnsville.

"He really found a way to connect with his community," she said.

Emily Johns • 952-882-9056