Mark Burnette

Dr. Mark Burnette brings over 34 years of experience in the field of education and is currently a Superintendent in southwestern Virginia where he serves as a champion for students in rural and low income areas. In this role, he has transformed his division to a virtual learning platform, ensuring all students had reliable internet access, delivering meals and learning materials, and providing healthcare services through the pandemic to all students.

As a teacher he was awarded the Check Excellence Award for Vocational Education by the Virginia Department of Education and as an administrator he was instrumental in bringing a Governor’s School for Career and Technical Education to the region and helped develop the first STEM lab for Agriculture at the secondary level in the nation. Mark serves on numerous Boards and Councils including the University of Virginia Advisory Council for K-12 Education, the Great Opportunities in Technology and Engineering Careers (GOTEC) Advisory Board, the Crossroads Institute Board of Directors, Carroll County Wellness Center Board of Directors, and he actively serves as a member of the Virginia Association of School Superintendents and Western Virginia Public Education Consortium. 

Mark earned his Ed.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies as well as his teaching licensure from Virginia Tech and received the Excellence in Education Award recipient from his alma mater for his work in developing a Dropout Prevention Task Force for his division. Burnette is experienced with managing school renovation projects, creating student and teacher wellness programs, managing difficult budget negotiations, and implementing strategic student learning programs.