Growing up, Roosevelt Nivens felt hopeless. He struggled to find his calling and, at one point, planned to end his own life.
“Jesus spoke to me and said … ‘You’re not going to do this today and you’re not going to do this ever,’” said Nivens, now the superintendent of Lamar Consolidated schools in Texas.
Decades later, on Thursday night, Nivens’ calling was clear as he was named the 2026 National Superintendent of the Year, considered the most prestigious award for district leaders.
“Imagine if I had not lived within my purpose, how many young people under my leadership would not have had a chance to experience what I wanted to offer,” an emotional Nivens said as he accepted the award.
Nivens has led the 49,000-student Lamar Consolidated district, located southwest of Houston, since 2021. Previously, he was superintendent of Community Independent schools, outside of Dallas, for six years, and an assistant superintendent in Lancaster, Texas, for four years. He also has experience as a high school and middle school principal and a teacher.
The other finalists for the award were: Demetrus Liggins, superintendent of Fayette County, Ky., schools; Sonja Santelises, superintendent of Baltimore City schools; and Heather Perry, superintendent of the Gorham, Maine, school department.
Nivens has led Lamar Consolidated schools through a period of rapid growth—enrollment has grown by 23% during his tenure and district population analyses predict continued rapid growth, thanks in part to a boom in local housing construction.
‘Whatever [students] need is what we’re going to give them’
During a January panel discussion of the four finalists, Nivens discussed his team’s philosophy and preparation for federal funding uncertainty for education. He said it’s superintendents’ responsibility to forge new funding paths—whether from state lawmakers or community organizations—and protect students from losing access to services that will set them up for long-term success.
“To me, when students walk into my district, their last name becomes Nivens, and that means whatever they need is what we’re going to give them,” Nivens said. “Regardless of what the federal government does, regardless [of] what our state government does, my kids are going to be taken care of.”
On Thursday, he called on fellow superintendents to center students’ needs when the job gets tough.
“They need you. They didn’t ask to be where they are. They didn’t ask to be born into their situations,” Nivens said. “What they do need, and what they are asking for, is for an adult to advocate for them, and speak life into them, and believe in them. So remember, you are undefeated and you are unstoppable.”
The award was presented here during the National Conference on Education. The award and conference are both sponsored by AASA, The School Superintendents Association.
Finalists for the Superintendent of the Year award are chosen from winners of the state superintendent-of-the-year contests. They’re evaluated on four criteria: how their creative leadership meets students’ needs, communication skills, professionalism, and community involvement. An AASA panel of judges then selects the winner.
A student attending either the high school from which the superintendent graduated or a school in the Lamar Consolidated district will receive a $10,000 scholarship in Nivens’ name.
