Chris McIntyre – Warren County Public Schools

In a district that measures growth by the hundreds of new students it welcomes each year, the person responsible for balancing the books is also the one overseeing the buildings those students walk into every day. Christopher McIntyre, the Chief Financial Officer, Chief Operating Officer, Treasurer and construction supervisor for Warren County Public Schools (WCPS) in Bowling Green, Kentucky, has spent more than two decades building something far bigger than a budget — he has helped shape a school district into a thriving community institution whose influence extends well beyond the classroom.

Warren County Public Schools is among Kentucky’s most dynamic public-school systems. As the fourth-largest district in the state, it serves nearly 19,000 students across 32 facilities, drawing families representing more than 90 nationalities and 102 languages. The district graduates students at a 97 percent rate, operates one of Kentucky’s largest transportation systems, and has been recognized as the state’s most energy-efficient school district. Eleven Distinguished Schools and four Schools of Distinction round out a profile that few districts anywhere in the country can match.

Behind those numbers is a philosophy rooted in long-term investment. Every facility, every energy contract and every themed building serves a purpose that extends well beyond the school day. The district’s “preschool-to-profession” model connects early learning to career readiness through 46 career pathways, while partnerships with local governments, the Chamber of Commerce and industry partners like IBM and Georgia Tech ensure students are prepared for a workforce that is constantly evolving. WCPS opened the nation’s first net-zero energy school and now maintains 23 Energy Star-labeled buildings, supported by a $30 million guaranteed energy savings contract that continues to generate millions of dollars in annual savings reinvested directly into student programs

Managing money & mortar

McIntyre came to public education by way of banking. After earning a degree in accounting from Western Kentucky University, he spent nine years in the financial industry before joining WCPS as Director of Finance. His background as a CPA gave him a fluency with balance sheets, risk management and long-term financial planning that translated seamlessly into the operational demands of a large school district. He served nearly a decade in that role before stepping into the CFO and treasurer positions in 2015, where he also took on oversight of construction and facilities. He later added the title of COO in July 2023, further consolidating his role as the district’s operational backbone.

It was not an obvious pairing — finance and construction — but McIntyre has made the combination work to the district’s considerable advantage. His financial instincts inform every capital decision, from how projects are structured and bid to how costs are tracked against long-term operational projections. When the district transitioned to a construction management model in 2015, McIntyre oversaw a shift that brought more competitive bidding, tighter cost controls and greater accountability across a growing portfolio of projects. The discipline he learned tracking loan valuations and financial risk in the banking world found new expression in managing school construction timelines and capital budgets.

“Financials drive everything,” McIntyre says. “We operate 30-plus facilities, and everybody has needs and wants when it comes to improvements. It is a balance between board members, the community and schools. We have to be strategic when it comes to investment.”

That strategic discipline has shaped a $250 million construction program designed to serve both current enrollment demands and long-term community needs. Most recently, the district opened a new replacement school and is set to unveil a 180,000-square-foot, 7-through-12 campus this fall — a project five years in the making that features AI-powered learning labs, an esports arena, a nursing program, a 25-foot waterfall and a replica of the Las Vegas Sphere.

The power of a trusted team

McIntyre is candid about the learning curve that came with taking on construction supervision alongside his financial duties. Managing large-scale building projects requires a different kind of trust than managing a ledger, and he has had to grow comfortable letting others lead.

“We have a great team,” McIntyre says. “Learning to trust and delegate has been challenging for me, but what I have learned is that when you assemble a team that complements each other, you create a dynamic force capable of meeting any challenge…”

That team includes long-tenured finance staff, a deeply experienced custodial and maintenance crew, and a construction management team whose contributions have been essential to the district’s signature themed buildings. McIntyre handles land acquisition, building themes, architectural concepts and exterior design, while his interior designer narrows the choices to a manageable set.

“She gives me three choices,” he says. “That works for both of us.”

The results speak for themselves. WCPS schools include a LEGO-themed building where the mascot, a bulldog featured in the entry, is assembled from 140,000 individual LEGO pieces, a school featuring a 13-foot Tree of Knowledge inspired by the Tree of Life at Disney’s Animal Kingdom, and an upcoming ski lodge-themed campus complete with a 25-foot fireplace, home to a team called the Yetis and anchored by a seven-foot foam mascot. A sports car-themed school is also in development, a nod to the region’s deep connection to Corvette manufacturing.

McIntyre selects the superintendents who oversee job sites with the same directness he brings to every decision.

“I get to pick the project superintendents on the job sites,” he says. “I like my teammates to have similar personalities — they are responsible for calling me out. No idea is too out there for us in this district.”

His broader hiring philosophy reflects a values-first approach. Personality and work ethic matter more than credentials, and staff who come from other districts are welcomed not for what they did elsewhere, but for what they can contribute — and improve — here. It is a culture of candor and accountability, built deliberately over more than two decades.

What comes next

McIntyre has now served Warren County Public Schools for 21 years, a tenure that spans the district’s emergence as a national leader in sustainable school design, a period of substantial enrollment growth averaging 450 students per year for nearly a decade, and the launch of some of the most inventive educational facilities in the region. His path from commercial banking to public school CFO is unconventional, but the skills he brought from finance — analytical precision, fiscal discipline and an eye for long-term value — have proven to be exactly what a growing district needs in the person managing both its money and its buildings.

The new Impact Center for Leadership & Innovation, designed for year-round community use and powered by an evolving solar and battery micro-grid, is the latest expression of that vision. It represents not just a new building, but a continued commitment to the community that has grown up around and within Warren County Public Schools — one that McIntyre and the exceptional team he has built intend to keep delivering on for many years to come.

“Excellence requires the courage to be different. We treat our district as a laboratory for innovation—where every energy-saving contract, themed building or face lift to an existing facility is an investment in a future that our students haven’t even imagined yet.”