Brad Crozier and his experiences as assistant superintendent

Pictured+is+Brad+Crozier%2C+assistant+superintendent+of+Wayland+Public+Schools.++Brad+Crozier+spoke+to+WSPN+about+his+job.+%E2%80%9CWe+could+be+meeting+or+taking+phone+calls+about+a+facility+issue+or+a+building+issue%2C+or+it+could+be+working+on+a+letter+or+memo+to+staff+on+a+particular+topic%2C%E2%80%9D+Crozier+said.+%E2%80%9CThere%E2%80%99s+not+one+sort+of+typical+day.%E2%80%9D

Credit: Nandita Subbiah

Pictured is Brad Crozier, assistant superintendent of Wayland Public Schools. Brad Crozier spoke to WSPN about his job. “We could be meeting or taking phone calls about a facility issue or a building issue, or it could be working on a letter or memo to staff on a particular topic,” Crozier said. “There’s not one sort of typical day.”

Nandita Subbiah

Assistant superintendent Brad Crozier wears many hats in the Wayland Public Schools. Ranging from issues regarding staffing to curriculum, Crozier has a role in all of it.

“There are a lot of different duties that I do…Basically, I’m in charge of taking care of any HR (human resource) issues, making sure that we have the right staffing based on the number of students there are,” Crozier said. “Part of that includes negotiating with the unions [about] salary and working conditions and contract issues.”

Crozier has been the assistant superintendent since 2007 after serving as principal of Happy Hollow School for six years. According to Crozier, he was also the principal of a school in Arkansas and taught in both Connecticut and Arkansas.

Education has been a lifelong passion for Crozier.

“When I was in high school, I volunteered at the elementary school, so the roots go pretty far back. Both my mom and dad are teachers, and my dad retired as the superintendent. My grandmother was a teacher,” Crozier said. “It’s been more than 20 years that I have been in education.”

Crozier has a bachelor’s degree in business from Grayson University and a master’s degree in education from the University of Bridgeport.

As part of his job, Crozier meets monthly with the department heads at each of the Wayland schools to discuss curriculum planning.

“I do a lot with curriculum and curriculum design,” Crozier said. “[The department heads and I] have discussions about where the curriculum is going, what kind of textbooks do we need, what are the state standards, what’s the state assessment, all of those sort of big picture things.”

Crozier originally came to Wayland because he had heard about the good reputation of the schools and the way the community supports the schools.

Crozier explains that every workday is different for him. He may have some morning meetings with the principals or department heads. He also works with Dr. Paul Stein, superintendent of the Wayland Public Schools.

“We could be meeting or taking phone calls about a facility issue or a building issue, or it could be working on a letter or memo to staff on a particular topic,” Crozier said. “There’s not one sort of typical day.”

He also explains that his plans may change at the last minute.

“I had a plan for what I was going to do [this morning], and then when I got in I found [out] that Claypit Hill had lost power,” Crozier said. “There was troubleshooting around how we were going to serve students’ lunch without power and when we could get the power back on. [We were] communicating with other town departments, such as the police and fire department, to see if we [could] speed up getting the electricity back up.”

But Crozier enjoys the variety of his job as assistant superintendent.

“I’m fortunate that I get to do a lot of different things in my job. It’s never boring. I have gone on the Cape [Cod trip for seventh graders], and I have gone on the D.C. trip [for eighth graders] for quite a few years,” Crozier said. “That diversity in day-to-day activities is what keeps things fresh.”