In an interview with Community Impact, Friendswood ISD Superintendent Thad Roher reflected on his decade leading the district, discussing its growth, his priorities for the future and what he hopes will remain at the heart of FISD.
A Friendswood native, Roher graduated from Friendswood High School in 1986 before returning to the district as an assistant principal in 1999. He became superintendent in 2017, leading the district through Hurricane Harvey during his first year, followed by a pandemic and several bond elections.
“I didn't want to just be a superintendent. I wanted to be the superintendent here in Friendswood,” Roher said. “I put my name in the hat and just was blessed to get a chance to do it.”
How have your goals and priorities for Friendswood ISD evolved over the past 10 years as the district and community have grown and changed?
When I first started, I created six priorities:
Create a community of learning that impacts the leadership team, students, staff and community
Systematically and organically infuse character traits that form the foundation of our community
Provide authentic, engaging learning opportunities for all students that allow them to pursue a selected future path
Engage the community in decision-making, learning and promotion of FISD as a premier-level organization with world-class campuses
Transform education facilities into modern learning spaces
Implement a community-based accountability system.
You have priorities, but you deal with what comes, so those become different priorities over the years. The [education] landscape has changed so much, but the goal has remained the same of what we want our learners to experience and feel. I feel like leaders now who are able to sustain have to be super flexible in how they approach things, which sometimes means challenging their beliefs a little bit, too.
But it's not just me. It’s our board and our team. I have just been blessed enough to go along on the ride and be part of the decision-making process. The vision has always been there, and I'm really proud of setting it and moving toward it.
Are there any programs or initiatives implemented during your tenure that you feel have made a lasting impact on students?
I think in those 10 years we've really transformed the experiences for kids. In my second year, we gathered a large community group to really answer the question, “What are your hopes and dreams for Friendswood ISD?” Out of that came a goal that was to redefine student success, which is more than going to college. There are so many more pathways, so many more opportunities. So what I see in those 10 years is just tremendously broadening that vision, not only in what's offered, but also in the facilities that support that.
We have a new fine arts center and career technology pieces that we offer now that we didn't have 10 years ago. Who ever thought we would have rocketry programs at Friendswood High School?
For every student, we want to provide the best experience for them. I think the exciting thing is there's more ahead.
Why do you think it’s important for a superintendent to connect with people on a personal level, beyond the administrative role?
Number one, it is why I became a superintendent. Just walking into rooms and seeing those kids, seeing those teachers, what they do, that magic draws me. Watching kids and teachers experience that, that just fires me up.
Secondly, the leaders that I admire are present. Abraham Lincoln was on the battlefield on horseback, walking amongst the soldiers. He wasn't fighting the battle, and I don't teach any kids. Research, but also just experience, shows us that presence lifts an organization, and I believe that to be true.
Now that voters have approved three of the four 2026 bond propositions, what are you most looking forward to seeing move forward?
I'm really proud of our team and board for what we brought forward. I think that was a great learning opportunity for me and a different approach to going out for bonds than what has been familiar for so many in the past. I feel like we did a really good job of listening and adjusting.
I'm excited that we were able to, as we had hoped, pass that bond and still not have a tax increase. But really excited for the time that we're spending on planning for the Career and Agricultural Center. It's going to be a great experience for our kids and for our community. I think it is something that even those who voted against it are going to be proud of.
Then the same is true with our other pieces, namely the science labs, which we're in the middle of planning. Also, just the relief of having new air conditioning systems and roofing.
What would you like to see from the state in terms of funding, policies or initiatives to better support public education?
I would like to see the state focus on, in terms of legislation, things that from the practitioner's standpoint, we are really struggling with. In other words, there are bills related to library books and posting 10 Commandments on the walls. For us in schools, those are non-issues. Special education is continuing to grow. That's where we need help. I think it's important for [legislators'] ears and eyes in the public schools to know what's really going on.
We have the programs that create the workforce that makes the Texas economy great. We have welders that can go work in Texas City on upcoming projects for shipping. We have engineers who are going to put stuff on Mars, I'm sure.
Compliance is not inspiring. Rather, the district needs to be focusing on how we can better teach our kids and how we can better engage them.
What do you think Friendswood ISD will need to prioritize as the district continues to grow?
I think we're at a crossroads right now in public education. There are two roads we can go down. One is a road where we put in a state curriculum and move toward compliance. The other is the road we want to continue on—making school vibrant, engaging and different, and reshaping what the experience of school can be. That's the road I hope we go down over the next 10 years.
We've laid the groundwork, done the hard things, made hard decisions, and built the team, the board and the community for that to happen.
What do you hope will remain a strong part of Friendswood ISD over the next 10 years?
In my interview for superintendent, I had all this pent-up understanding of what our community was about because I had been raised here. I was Mustang Blue through and through.
During the interview, I said out loud, "I just want to unleash." My very first year, the theme was “Mustang Pride Unleashed.”
We're producing the citizens that go out and make their world different, whether they're a reporter, a military person, a doctor, a lawyer or a welder—I want them to be different because they've been in Friendswood. They've been in our community, in our schools and in a belief system that challenges this kind of negative thing that we have going on in our world. They're different because of that.
