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Bandera ISD Superintendent Kevin Dyes 'cowboys up' for the kids in his district
By Elizabeth Millard
 Kevin Dyes’ career track in education is fairly standard, having transitioned from teacher to principal to his current position as superintendent of Bandera ISD. But he may have one of the more unusual stories among his peers when it comes to the origin of his career. It all began when he was working as a cowboy in Queensland, Australia.
“I think there are parallels between being a rancher and being an educator,” he says. “It’s all about watching things grow and develop and making a difference in that process.”
Growing up in East Texas, Dyes learned how to be a rancher, and while earning his bachelor’s degree in agriculture at Stephen F. Austin State University in Nacogdoches, he signed up for an FFA program that allowed him to work abroad for a year as a cowboy.
That experience taught him the importance of community. Even though the cowboys in that country didn’t see their neighbors more than a few times a year, people knew each other and looked after each other.
“Everyone worked together; they had a close bond,” Dyes recalls.
When the young Texan came home to pursue his master’s degree in agriculture, he took that community spirit to the school farm at Stephen F. Austin. As part of a summer program, he interacted with groups of at-risk children brought in from urban areas.
“You could see a change in their attitudes, in their work ethic,” Dyes says. “These were kids who were way outside of their environment and knew nothing about a farm. But they worked hard, and we all ended up having so much fun. It was so rewarding. To put it simply, it brought me joy.”
Before the summer program, Dyes was intent on a career in ranch management, but working with kids awakened his passion for education. After graduating from college, he found a way to combine his two loves by becoming an agricultural teacher — a role he played for 10 years, first at a small school in Apple Springs and then in Nacogdoches so he could go back to Stephen F. Austin for his doctorate.
Dyes admits that after a decade of teaching, he was ready to take the next step.
“In the school business, moving up means being a principal; you get the feeling that if you’ve been successful as a teacher, maybe as a principal you could help other teachers, and more importantly, kids,” Dyes says. “All of us working in education have a love of seeing kids be successful, and I knew that as a principal, I could affect kids positively.”
Dyes began his administrative track in Cushing ISD as the principal of Cushing School, grades 7 to 12. After two years, he transferred to another high school closer to his home.
He says the experience taught him two things: the importance of AP classes in secondary schools and the realization that high school principals have “the hardest job in education.” He jokes a bit about the second insight, but there’s truth in his musings. Dyes says the job entails numerous after-school commitments and the important work of preparing students for higher education — not to mention handling disciplinary issues and preventing dropouts.
While serving as a principal, Dyes was still working on his doctorate at Stephen F. Austin. To make things a little easier, he eventually took a job as principal of an elementary school that was closer to campus. He applied for a superintendent job at one point, but he didn’t get it. Dyes admits he was disappointed about it at the time; but in hindsight, he is thankful for the missed opportunity. His career had been all about high school until he transferred to the elementary school.
 “After three years at an elementary school, I had a deeper understanding of that level of education,” Dyes says. “It was an eye opener.”
A superintendent position was in his future, though. In 2003, he landed the lead position in the tiny ranching town of Cranfills Gap. It was an idyllic setting for the cowboy. While learning the nuances of a top administrator post, Dyes spent his downtime running cattle on 240 acres. He moved his herd of shorthorns to Bandera ISD when he took his current superintendent position there.
“I’ve always had some sort of livestock, and I always will,” he says, then laughs. “When I retire, I’ll be one of those old ranchers down at the coffee shop, complaining about politics and taxes and, of course, the latest superintendent.”
But until then, Dyes is intent on tending to his faculty and students with as much care as he always has given his ranching. At Bandera ISD, the challenge has been to keep up a certain level of achievement.
“Sometimes, it’s easy to go to a school district that has struggled, because you can make a quick turnaround,” he says. “But Bandera is a good school district. So, the question becomes: How do you continue that success? You have to figure out the needs of the community and fulfill those needs.”
Dyes often draws on the bedrock of values and lessons gained early in his career: the neighborly ways of the Australian cowboys, the joy of assisting at-risk kids, and the insights gained from serving as a teacher and a principal.
“The foundation of our society is that if you work hard and educate yourself, you have the chance to be happy in what you do,” he says. “Our job as educators is to provide a level playing field, to give every kid a shot at that happiness.”
ELIZABETH MILLARD is a Minneapolis, Minn.-based writer who frequently contributes to District Administration magazine, which reaches 75,000 school administrators nationwide.
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