AU College of Education names Georgia school superintendent outstanding alum

Ron Saunders, an alumnus of Auburn University’s College of Education, has been named the college’s 2008 Outstanding Alumnus.

The current superintendent of Barrow County Schools in Widner, Ga., Saunders earned a bachelor’s degree in social science education in 1970.

Since 1998, he has been a teacher, assistant principal, principal and staff development director. Prior to Barrow County Schools, he served as superintendent of Huntsville City Schools for seven years.

Saunders also was selected recently by the Georgia School Superintendents Association as its 2008 Georgia Superintendent of the Year. Earlier this year, he was named one of the nation’s top 10 most “tech savvy” K-12 executives by eSchool News for his outstanding ed-tech leadership and vision.

Saunders has been active at his alma mater, having served on the education college’s National Advisory Council since 2002. He and his wife, Kathy, are members of the Dean’s Circle. In 1994, with his mother and siblings, he helped establish the Ronald Saunders Endowed Scholarship, which honors the memory of his father, a 1947 graduate and 1985 recipient of the college’s Outstanding Alumnus Award.