Member Spotlight

BERNADETTE GERACE PROSPER ISD

Bernadette Gerace currently serves as the Executive Director of Human Resources in Prosper ISD. She received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology from Texas A&M University, a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Concordia University, and is currently working on her Doctorate of Education at Dallas Baptist University. Bernadette is in her 23rd year in education. Bernadette was asked by her superintendent in the summer of 2012 to move from her high school teaching position to lead the Prosper ISD Human Resources department. What she didn’t know was that for that first year, she would need to keep teaching her AP Psychology course for four class periods and head to the administration office midday to work her new HR role. During that school year, Prosper ISD had only Bernadette and her coordinator, and they served eight campuses and 700 staff members. From 2012 to 2018, Prosper ISD grew to 16,000 students on 13 campuses and 1,900 staff members. In 2018, Bernadette moved from HR Director to serve as the Director of Recruitment and Retention for the district, shifting her focus to employee engagement and retention. Bernadette now serves as the Executive Director of HR in Prosper ISD, with over 21,000 students on 20 campuses and 2,800 staff members. Under Bernadette’s leadership, Prosper ISD Human Resources moved from a fully paper-dependent system to a paperless one, including an online application and hiring process, onboarding and forms system, evaluation system, and now a new professional learning program that works hand-inhand with the evaluation system. She and her coordinator developed processes to ensure that Prosper ISD remains compliant with all educational laws and regulations, trained administrators on proper procedures and documentation,

Bernadette Gerace is recognized at TASA Mid Winter for receving the AASPA and created a transfer process.

Personnel Administrator of the Year Award

The entire hiring process became a robust system that allows principals to hire with confidence. Candidates go through a thorough process that includes an application, digital interview, and educator assessment, along with the typical reference and in-person interview requirements. She empowered her campus and district administrators to hire highly qualified educators for their campuses and departments. This effectiveness continues on to evaluations and professional learning, as they are tied together for a more impactful way to guide teachers and staff members in their professional growth.

Bernadette created a truly special program to support and mentor first year teachers and new-to-the-district teachers, and the district attrition rate has fallen each year, down to seven percent in 2019-2020. She also took over the leadership development program in Prosper ISD, and she has helped other districts to develop both, following her models.

Bernadette has not kept her work within the district. She has served as an officer in the regional NCTASPA group and as president for two years and maintains active participation with NCTASPA today. She also presents regularly at NCTASPA, TASPA, and AASPA. She currently serves as the TASPA 2nd Vice President. She is a member of the AASPA Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion planning committee and previously served on the Membership committee. Finally, under Bernadette’s leadership, Prosper ISD has been named one of the top places to work by the Dallas Morning News for eight years straight. As an immigrant to the United States and former ESL student, Bernadette believes it is her responsibility to be a vocal supporter and champion for public education, and she continues to strive for excellence and seeks to mentor others to establish and maintain sound human resources practices.

I came to HR after 27 years on a campus (first as a teacher, then as a part of campus leadership) and have long said that there are no easy jobs in education. My 5 years in HR have certainly reaffirmed this, but they’ve also reaffirmed the second part of that belief: there are no jobs more rewarding than those in education.”

“Quite honestly, I do not know where I would be in my understanding and service in Human Resources/ Capital if it were not for TASPA. The educational opportunities available through our conferences and newsletters are numerous and the benefits are beyond measure.”