Sometimes, being a rebel can be a good thing. Just ask Dr. Steven L. Walts, Superintendent of Prince William County Public School in Virginia. In 1971 he and fellow drum major Steve Rothenberger led the Argonne Rebels Drum and Bugle Corps to their first American Legion Natinal Championship at the Houston Astrodome, and in 1972, retained the crown in Chicago. He will return to his home town Saturday as the keynote speaker at the dedication of “The Hometown Team: How our Community Championed Its Youth” exhibit at the Great Bend Public Library. Walts’s time with Rebels taught him a lot about the pursuit of excellence and leadership. Today, he leads a school district that serves over 86,000 students in 94 schools and employes approximately 10,500, making his district the largest employer in his county. Its the second largest school district in the state. It’s a long way from his Great Bend upbringing, but the values he learned here in the Golden Belt shaped him into the dynamic leader he is today. Paticipating in the Rebels taught him to set his sights on achieving a world-class standard, and those lessons carry on today as he works to recruit and retain top educators and encourage high school students to pursue the rigorous Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate, and Cambridge courses. Through these efforts, Dr. Walts is leading his district towards acheiving its mission of providing a world-class education for every student. The awards and acheivements the district has won helped his community rank in the America’s Promise Alliance Nation’s 100 Best Communities for Young People in 2011 and 2012, the last two years of the competition. Dr. Walts received his doctorate in Education Policy and Leadership from the University of Maryland. He began his teaching career as an elementary teacher and building principal in Wichita, Kansas, then served in Baltimore County, Maryland as an Assistant Superintendent before becoming Superintendent in Greece, New York in 1998.