FOSTER, R.I. -- Michael Barnes, superintendent of the Foster-Glocester Regional Schools, has been named 2014 Rhode Island Superintendent of the Year.
The Rhode Island School Superintendents' Association (RISSA) made the announcement Aug. 14. The award recognizes Barnes' outstanding achievement in school district leadership, his dedication to the education of all children, commitment to the community, and his service to RISSA.
Heather Abbott of Newport, one of the survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing, was the keynote speaker at the RISSA meeting.
Barnes has served as the superintendent in Foster-Glocester since 2008. He worked at the Ponaganset Middle and High Schools beginning in 1988, where he worked in the technology department.
He also served as a fellow for the Rhode Island Department of Education in the areas of high school reform and school accountability.
Barnes will be honored by the American Association of School Administrators at the
National Conference on Education to be held in Nashville in February 2014. He lives in
Lincoln with his wife and two children.