Joe Knight introduced Jefferson County Schools Superintendent Walter Gonsoulin Tuesday as though he expected the newly crowned top educator in the country to put the bite on the Jefferson County Commission.

Applause filled the room as Knight greeted Gonsoulin as the Superintendent of the Year for the United States.

“He is now a big shot,” the commissioner said. “He is here now to shake us down, er, give us a presentation.”

But half an hour after Gonsoulin stepped to the podium, his request was only that Jefferson County keep doing what it’s already doing.

“So how can a commission help? You knew I would eventually get to that,” the superintendent mused. “Continue financial support of education opportunities through the JefCoEd Foundation. Just continue to do what you already do, how y’all work with us.

“Like I said before I went to Virginia (where he competed for the national honor), the cooperation and the collaboration between the school district and the community is outstanding. We just ask that y’all continue that.”

Following the meeting, Knight acknowledged the superintendent’s comments.

“Keep doing what you’re doing, which is what we do,” the chair of the commission’s finance committee said. “We really try, especially at my office. We try to help the schools all we can. We’ll continue to do that.

“We already fund them through the 1-cent sales tax,” Knight said. “But if there’s anything different, we’ll hear it from Dr. Gonsoulin.”