Edna ISD has announced their Lone Finalist for Superintendent: Mason Briscoe IV.
Currently, he’s been the principal at Hallettsville High School for several years. He’s at the beginning of the 21-day waiting period, and will start on Tuesday, May 26.
Briscoe, 34, was born and raised in Needville, not to mention he graduated from there as well.
His parents still reside there, and his mother has been with NISD education for nearly 40 years.
“I grew up blue and white, and I get to wear blue and white again,” he said. “My family does some ranching so we get to be Cowboys, literally and figuratively. I’m excited to see what Edna has in store for me.”
Briscoe’s background in education stemmed from his mother, and two of her sisters were also teachers. His mother rose in the education field from an elementary school teacher, principal, and now the assistant superintendent at Needville.
A graduate of Texas Lutheran University, Briscoe also played on TLU’s baseball team.
His first job was at Hallettsville, teaching history and coaching baseball. He then returned to Needville for nearly two years as their head baseball coach, and then went back to Hallettsville as their Offensive Coordinator and head baseball coach. After that, he too rose in the ranks to become the assistant principal and then head principal at Hallettsville.
He spoke of the inspiration behind his growth.
“Seeing my mom as an administrator had a lot to do with it, but once I got into coaching, I loved watching kids succeed. I received my masters at a young age, but as I moved up in administration, I saw I affected more people,” Briscoe said. “Then as AP I affected a certain group, as principal I affected a whole school, and now I get to affect an entire district, interacting with adults and children.
From left, Mason V, Mason IV, Sarah, and Ty Briscoe. Contributed photo
“So people might say that I’m young—which I am—but I’ve had a lot of experience most people my age haven’t received in order to put me in this position. I have school pride and bought into the system, and just watching the kids succeed is second to none.”
His style of teaching, coaching and leadership is to listen first, and respond with honest, trustworthy transparency. He believes directness to be a lost art, and strives to achieve it daily. He said when one is honest and direct, it’s likely to be reciprocated.
Last week Briscoe did the rounds at the five campuses in the district and was able to meet leadership, some teachers, custodians and maintenance people.
“It was great because I like meeting people face-to-face, with handshakes; I would rather not send an email if I don’t have to, and I want to be approachable,” he said. “Everyone was great and had a great attitude, especially for the last day in April in a school system.”
Briscoe plans on introducing himself on social media soon, and he plans to follow in Interim Superintendent Billy Boyd’s footsteps, by getting on Facebook live once a month, sharing weekly district happenings, and every board meeting will be updated on Facebook.
He is married to his wife of eight years, Sarah, who was born and raised in Inez, and attended St. Joseph High School in Victoria. They have two boys, Mason V, who is five, and Ty, who is three.
“My door is always open and I want to be as available as possible. I don’t like being in an office, so I’m going to be around a lot of places in the different campuses,” he said. “It’s all about the kids and we’re going to make sure that we make decisions which will improve their future.
“Never in my wildest imaginations did I think I would be a superintendent at 34, but I’m here, looking forward to it and I’m excited, this is a cool moment for me and my family. I love small towns, I grew up in one, and love that Edna is a small town. I don’t see myself ever going to a big town, I want to raise my family in a small town,” he concluded.
