When a Full Year-Round Model Wasn't Planned Fully with Dr. Mark Bedell

Hello Imperfect Leaders!

This week, Dr. Mark T. Bedell is my guest. Mark and I became friends during his 6 years as the Superintendent of the Kansas City Public Schools, but Mark is no longer a Missouri resident. He began a four-year term as Superintendent of Anne Arundel County Public Schools on July 1, 2022, Maryland’s fourth largest school district.

BIO:

Dr. Bedell is a talented, caring teacher, administrator and proven public school leader with a track record of success in urban districts. In 2022, he led Kansas City Public Schools to full accreditation status for the first time in more than 20 years.

Dr. Bedell has spent his career pushing for educational equity. Under his steady leadership, Kansas City Public Schools created an innovative Equity Policy to direct the school system’s resources and programs to give every student the opportunity to reach their greatest potential.

Dr. Bedell has received many recognitions, including being named a “Superintendent to Watch” by the National School Public Relations Association and a “New Superintendent of the Year” by the Missouri Association of School Administrators. He was named to 435 magazine’s Top 50 Power List as one of the most powerful people to shape the Kansas City region and to The Kansas City Business Journal’s Power 100 List. He was also recognized by The Kansas City Star as one of the 51 most influential Missourians.

In 2020, Dr. Bedell was a finalist for the Green-Garner Award, the top honor for urban school leaders across the country. 

Dr. Bedell has written several articles and opinion pieces for newspapers, magazines, and journals. His numerous speaking engagements, awards, national board service for several high-level organizations and equity-centered keynotes make him a leading Superintendent in public education.

His most important honors, however, have come from students. In 2018, students at Southeast High School in Kansas City presented Dr. Bedell with an award for his efforts on their behalf and the positive impact he would have on future students. In 2022, Middle College students named Dr. Bedell “Superintendent of the Century.” The Middle College program started by Dr. Bedell has changed the lives of nearly 300 Kansas City Public Schools students who otherwise would have dropped out of high school.

Dr. Bedell and his wife, Robyn, an attorney, have three children. Their two oldest graduated from Kansas City Public Schools and now attend HBCUs. Their youngest is excited to be starting middle school in Anne Arundel County Public Schools in August.

[SOURCE: https://www.aacps.org/domain/249]