RENO – Washoe County School District Superintendent Heath Morrison wasn’t happy to make the decision to cut $37 million from the budget for local schools, but he is proud of the collaboration that has resulted from the reductions in his first year on the job.

“It was the right time; it was a good time,” he told the Tribune on Wednesday, reflecting on his acceptance of the position as superintendent last year. “I knew there would be tremendous challenges but there were also tremendous opportunities.”

Morrison’s first anniversary as the schools chief, which officially was on Sunday, has been seasoned with challenges as Washoe County weathered some of the bleakest education budget storms in the state and nation: competing for reform-based federal funding, asking for cooperation from local associations for employees to take salary freezes and furlough days and battling against sluggish graduation rates.

Coming on board in August 2009 with that knowledge, however, didn’t stop his desire to uproot from Montgomery County in Maryland and travel to Reno to become a WCSD employee. His brief experience here so far has given him the latitude to rally support from community organizations, parents and teachers in a time of uncertainty.

“I always say it’s not a test of leadership when everyone thinks you look good when the times are good, but when times are tough,” he said.

Most recently, Morrison said, the loss of Race to the Top federal funding for educational reform denied Nevada and Washoe County School District access to $175 million, but the proposals for change in its application won’t go away because a commitment has been made that he intends to keep.

“The things that went into the application are as important today as they were (when they were written),” Morrison said. “It was never about the money. It’s about the recognition for the need to increase productivity and bring in industry for everyone who loves and lives here.”

The superintendent said he believes in a proactive approach in setting a reform agenda that he hopes will transform Washoe’s educational system and help all of its 63,000 students to achieve and become college- or career-ready.

“For some people, it’s not just a moral imperative to do what’s best for kids,” Morrison said. “For some people, it’s even more important that we have a better economy that resonates with folks because it’s the right thing to do for the state.”

One obstacle is overcoming the “status quo” by putting down on paper a plan that administrators, teachers and the community will buy into, a task Morrison has been attacking with the district’s Board of Trustees by creating a strategic plan that outlines the district’s mission, goals and tactics.

Trustee Barbara Clark, who was board president at the time of the search, said she was pleased with the process that took two rounds of candidate interviews before the board offered the position to Morrison. She said she is proud of the board’s choice.

Part of his appeal to the board as he transitioned into the top district job, she said, was his reliance on data to understand the trends among student and school performance.

“…Being able to see data and being able to make my decisions accordingly … is a big deal because while I believe, whether I’m here or the superintendent is here, once those processes are in place, it won’t matter who’s here (in the future),” Clark said. “We can rest assured the district has a good foundation over the years to accomplish the goals, which are increasing graduation rates and to diminish the gaps among students.”

Morrison has his eyes set on accomplishing more in the future. He hopes to establish full-day kindergarten in all of the district’s elementary schools and other early education programs. He said he once told someone that for every dollar spent on early education, $17 is saved down the road. Convincing the community to agree to such objectives is another challenge that he’s spent much of his time in the first year addressing.

Improving graduation rates is also a top priority, which includes building partnerships with the community to help teens walk the stage. Raising the district’s consistent 55 percent rate to higher numbers is an imperative, he said.

“It shouldn’t have to be hard with 63,000 reasons for doing it,” he said.

Clark said his strength for rallying support has been successful outside the district.

“He is very much a superintendent who is out in the community, meeting with people who are decision-makers at the local and state levels,” Clark said. “He is constantly seeking avenues to bring resources into the schools.”

Changing the district’s mindset from being “compliance-driven” to becoming “data-driven” continues to be important for him and he has been fairly successful because it’s created collaboration among the educators.

“We need to be about results,” he said. “We have to be honest about the data … and I don’t know how you build trust without honesty.”

His plans for the next year are to help the board complete the strategic plan and assist the district in capitalizing on more resources than just money.

“Time is a big resource, but so are people,” he said. “We need to figure out how to better build our (human) capital. … With a 14 percent unemployment rate, we need to talk to people into helping the district. There are people who can build websites or work on landscapes who can help us or people who can be mentors for kids. There are lots of opportunities to help.”

Morrison said he has no regrets about taking the job.

“It feels like we’re making a difference,” he said about his family’s move to Nevada. “We haven’t looked back for one day of the job.”