Chris Summers

Chris Summers currently serves as the Assistant Superintendent for Secondary Education in Montgomery ISD and is an adjunct professor at Houston Christian University and LeTourneau University. He received his doctorate (EdD) in Educational Leadership from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. With 29 years of experience in public education, Chris has held roles such as Assistant Superintendent in two districts, Director of Curriculum, and principal for twelve years. His teaching career began in junior high social studies and elementary math and science. As a principal, he was honored to be named a 2013 HEB Excellence in Education State Semi-Finalist Elementary Principal in the state of Texas. His innovative work and desire to improve teaching and learning led to his selection as one of ten national superintendent-level leaders chosen to participate in the year-long 2016 Lexington Institute’s Lexington Education Leadership Award (LELA) Fellowship, a national program partnered with the United States Department of Education dedicated to building personalized learning models in public schools.

During his time as a central office leader, Chris developed a multi-year teacher induction program that was recognized in Texas School Business Magazine’s “Tenth Annual Bragging Rights 2016-2017” edition highlighting ten districts from around the state of Texas for their innovative education programs. His work to develop systemic teacher induction also led to his district receiving the 2017 Learning Forward Texas “District Excellence in Professional Learning Award” at the Texas Association of School Administrators (TASA) Midwinter Conference for the Bear TIPS Teacher Induction Program he implemented.

Chris has worked across various school environments, including urban, suburban, rural, large, small, and fast-growth districts, with much of his experience focused on low-income or Title I campuses and communities. He has extensive experience in turnaround school settings and successfully led three campuses and two districts out of various levels of state performance monitoring status. His deep understanding of the unique qualities of a variety of district types, combined with his passion for supporting students and families, fuels his commitment to developing educators and empowering educational leaders to become effective instructional leaders. Chris believes that leading learning is vital, and how leaders guide their colleagues in the pursuit of learning is even more important.