TASBO TAKES A CLOSER LOOK AT SOME OF THE 2015-16 EMERGING LEADERS
EMERGING LEADER PROFILES
JUDY L. MARCHMAN
SPECIAL CONTRIBUTOR
EMERGING LEADER
Brent Ringo, Ed.D., Director of Finance | Allen ISD
W
When he’s not at work,
life for Brent Ringo is
pretty much dominated
by the demands of his
18-month-old son, Brody, but he’s just fine with that.
“Parenthood changes everything we
do—in a good way,” he said.
Brent, who is the director of finance
for Allen ISD, and his wife, Kristin,
enjoy taking Brody along in a stroller
when they go jogging in local parks,
but they’ve learned to take some detours along the way. “Brody has discovered the slides and playground,”
Brent laughed.
And soon, Brody will be able to show
the ropes to a sibling. Brent and
Kristin, who works at Baylor University Medical Health System in Dallas
as a clinical nutrition manager, are
expecting their second child in September.
The couple met on a blind date while
students at the University of Texas at
Austin. She was a member of the Texas Pom Squad and he was a walk-on
free safety for the UT football team.
A native of Amarillo, Brent, 34, went
to West Point after high school but
was honorably discharged after injuring his foot. He transferred to UT
where he played football for about a
year before his injury flared up once
again. He was working on a business administration degree but also
became certified to teach secondary
math with the goal of teaching and
coaching.
ISD. While there, he began working
toward his master’s degree in educational administration at Texas State
University. He received his master’s
in 2005, the same year he and Kristin
moved to the Dallas area for her job
with Baylor.
Brent steadily moved up through
several administrative positions in
public school districts in North Texas,
serving as an assistant and associate principal in Wylie ISD, all while
earning his doctorate in educational
leadership in 2008 from Texas A&M
University–Commerce. In 2012, he
transitioned to Royce City to serve as
principal.
“I always wanted to get into the
finance side, though,” Brent said.
“When I saw this job [director of
finance] open up at the Allen ISD, I
knew it was my dream job.”
Brent has been at Allen ISD since
August 2014 and is enjoying learning more about school finance, such
as bond information and purchasing
laws the district must follow. He also
credits several mentors who have
helped him gain his footing, including
Wylie ISD CFO Michele Trongaard
and his boss at Allen ISD, CFO Greg
Cartwright.
The
TASBO
Emerging
Leaders
program
came
at the
perfect
time, a