Dr. Jerry Maze is the Executive Director for Education Service Center (ESC) Region 12 in Waco, which provides professional development and support to educators and school personnel in 77 school districts and ten charter schools in 12 Central Texas counties. Maze became executive director in May of 2011. His vision for the Center is to continually develop and provide innovative, responsive and relevant solutions for the needs of educators and school personnel. The center employs 286 employees, including offsite employees that work in school districts as part of several large grants.
Experience
Maze has served in education for 35 years in various capacities, including as a teacher, director, consultant, high school principal, superintendent and as an executive director.
Originally from southeast Texas, Maze began his 17-year career in Livingston ISD as an English teacher at the middle and high school and later taught journalism at Livingston High School. He went on to serve as assistant principal, associate principal for curriculum and instruction and then as principal of the high school. Maze served as the media/public relations consultant and developed the district’s public relations and bond communication programs. He also served as director of community and academic alternative programs and advanced the development of district-wide academic support programs for serving at-risk students, including acceleration, credit recovery and a school of choice. In this position, he also managed district communications, community programs and a multi-million dollar scholarship program.
While serving as superintendent in Hubbard and Hillsboro ISDs, Maze emphasized student achievement and focused on financial efficiency. In Hubbard, he led the district through the construction and opening of a new middle school and established a district/community scholarship foundation. Before becoming executive director, he served as an associate executive director for administrative leadership & business services at ESC Region 12. In this position, he managed administrative leadership and school finance services as well as satellite offices.
Maze has a genuine spirit of collaboration and a passion for creating a culture of high expectations and innovative thinking. Through his vision, the ESC Region 12 Technology Foundation was formed in 2012 to help schools place instructional technology into the hands of Region 12 students. The foundation has awarded $532,333 in grants, serving 23,566 students.
Maze is always looking for strategic partnerships and solutions that will help increase student achievement and save schools money. More recently, he worked with leaders from Baylor University and Huckabee, an architect firm, to create the Learning Experience Collaborative. The LEx Collaborative, located at the Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative, researches the intersection of professional development and the built environment to determine the impact on student engagement and the learning experience.
Awards
Maze received the Peter C. Young Award in 2022 from the Association of Educational Service Agencies (AESA) for outstanding contributions to educational service agencies and service to AESA. Maze is the 2019 recipient of the Thomas Poe Regional Service Center Leadership Award in recognition of his leadership to school administrators. Maze received the national E. Robert Stephens Award in 2011 from the Association of Education Service Agencies (AESA) for research and writing in connection with his dissertation study on education service centers in Texas, “Superintendent Perceptions of their Professional Development in Leadership for Student Achievement at Texas Regional Education Service Centers.”
Service
The southeast Texan is passionate about giving back to his industry and community. He serves as the chair of the Association of Education Service Agencies (AESA) National Foundation, a member of the AESA Perspectives Editorial Board and he is a past president of the AESA. He serves on the boards and committees for the McLennan County Pack of Hope, the Texas Association of School Administrators, Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce, Waco Business Leaders, Greater Waco Advanced Manufacturing Academy (GWAMA) Executive Board and Prosper Waco. He also serves as a superintendent mentor for TASA and is a faculty member for international programs at Louisiana College.
Education
Maze received his Doctorate of Education degree from Lamar University and his Master of Education degree from Sam Houston State University. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Journalism from Texas A&M University and holds certifications in Secondary English and Journalism, Texas professional mid-management and Texas superintendent.
Personal
Maze and his wife Sherry reside in Waco near the Bosque River with their grand dog Kyah, a Border collie mix. They have five children and seven grandchildren. He enjoys photography, playing with his grandchildren, reading and fishing.