PROVIDENCE — One week after Donnie Evans resigned, Providence has a new school superintendent, Thomas M. Brady, the interim CEO of the Philadelphia school district.

Journal photo / Bill Murphy

Thomas M. Brady says "the two most important things are our national defense and K-12 education."

Brady, 57, is a retired Army colonel who will be taking over the state's largest school district -- and one that is facing several troubles.

In an interview with The Journal this morning, Brady said that his last post as commander of Fort Belvoir, Va., was akin to being the mayor of a mid-sized city. Born in New York City, he is the son of a police officer and grew up in Queens and Long Island, attending parochial schools.

In a move rare for superintendents, Brady began his career in education as president of a high school parent-teacher association in Fairfax, Va. during the late 1990s. When a leadership position opened up, he took it and became the district’s chief operating officer, where he oversaw the simultaneous opening of four elementary schools.

Brady said this morning that “the two most important things are our national defense and K-12 education.”

Brady described his leadership style as collaborative, not dictatorial. A strong leader, he said, establishes a clear vision and then empowers his staff to fulfill that vision. Quoting an ancient Chinese philosopher, Sun Tzu, Brady said being a good leader means that when you step down, your followers think that they did all of the work.

“There are all these misconceptions about the military,” he said. “Leadership is about empowering people and then holding them accountable. It’s about mutual trust.”

Brady says he doesn’t want people to call him colonel, adding that no one has used that title in a long time.

Unlike some of his predecessors, notably Diana Lam, Brady said he doesn’t plan to arrive in Providence, shake up the apple cart and then decamp to a larger school system.

When he was appointed superintendent two and a half years ago, Evans said that Providence would be the last stop in his career.

Brady didn’t promise to retire from Providence, but he did say that he’s here for the long haul.

“I don’t want to be the chancellor of Washington, D.C., or New York City,” he said. “Continuity is very important.”

Providence has been roiled by a constant turnover in leadership; three superintendents have swept through the district during the past eight years. Two of them, Lam and Melody Johnson, left the city for bigger opportunities in New York City and Houston, respectively. Evans hasn’t signaled what he plans to do after leaving Providence in June.

Brady had initially expressed an interest in the CEO job in Philadelphia but did not apply. Last week, the district hired Arlene Ackerman as head of the 167,000-student school system. Brady became interim chief in Philadelphia over the summer after Paul Vallas left to run New Orleans.

When Brady formally takes over in July, he will be confronted with some formidable challenges: The district is struggling with a $9.7 million budget shortfall at a time when both the General Assembly and Governor Carcieri have indicated that there is no new school aid this year.

Compounding the financial situation, the district has been placed in corrective action by state education Commissioner Peter McWalters because a large number of the city’s 50-plus schools are chronically low-performing. McWalters last year ordered the district to come up with a comprehensive plan to improve student achievement, a plan that may be threatened by the latest budget shortfall.

Meanwhile, the city, led by Mayor David N. Cicilline, wants to embark on an $800-million, multi-year overhaul of the city’s schools, some of which are almost 100 years old.

The new superintendent will also step into a climate of distrust.

The Providence Teachers Union, which has been involved in a protracted labor negotiation for more than seven months, overwhelming voted no confidence in Evans two weeks ago and has begun in informational picketing of school board meetings. And the City Council and the School Board have been sniping at each ever since a December snowstorm paralyzed local highways and stranded dozens of children on school buses until late at night.

Today, Brady said it was premature to discuss what changes he would make in the district. But he did promise to start building relationships with parents, local universities and business leaders.

“The mayor gets it here,” he said. “But there are no easy answers. I’m not the Messiah of K-12 education.”

Brady is married to Lisa Brady, a labor and delivery nurse and has five grown children and five grandchildren. A daughter has vowed to follow in her father’s footsteps: she wants to become a superintendent of schools one day.

lborg@projo.com / (401) 277-7823