Tag: Marysville School District

Berg takes helm at school district

Kirk BoxleitnerTerri Kaltenbach, left, speaks at the June 18 Marysville School District strategic leadership transitioning meeting also attended by incoming Superintendent Dr. Becky Berg, right.
Kirk Boxleitner
Terri Kaltenbach, left, speaks at the June 18 Marysville School District strategic leadership transitioning meeting also attended by incoming Superintendent Dr. Becky Berg, right.

Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe

MARYSVILLE — Incoming Superintendent Dr. Becky Berg wound up being one of nine Marysville School District staff members to be introduced, or in some cases reintroduced, to the community during the Marysville School Board’s June 17 meeting, and she would continue to introduce herself to the community through the following evening, during the district’s third strategic leadership transitioning meeting on June 18.

Berg preferred to listen during the brainstorming sessions at the Tulalip Resort on June 18, which were complimented with a review of the two prior community engagement events on May 14 and 16, and spent most of her time during the June 17 Board meeting introducing her team, which includes a few familiar faces in new roles.

“It’s not just me who’s coming on board, but a number of new staff members,” said Berg, who’s retained Ray Houser, former executive director of teaching and learning, as her assistant superintendent. “I don’t have anywhere near the energy level of Ray,” she added, before introducing Cinco Delgado, former principal of Ridgecrest Elementary in the Shoreline School District, as the new executive director of teaching and learning in Houser’s stead.

Former Newport School District Superintendent Jason Thompson is stepping in as executive director of human resources for the Marysville School District, while Liberty Elementary Principal Scott Irwin is stepping up as the district’s categorical programs director.

“Donneta Spath has created CTE programs that have served multiple schools, so she’s a perfect fit for her new role,” Houser said of Spath, who moves from being executive director of the Northwest Career & Technical Academy to being the Marysville School District’s Career and Technical Education Director. “It’s been a brisk year for retirements,” he laughed.

Outgoing Assistant Superintendent Gail Miller and remaining Executive Director of Teaching and Learning Dr. Kyle Kinoshita noted that Sonja Machovina and Gloria Henderson are no newcomers to the Marysville School District, having both started out as teachers at Tulalip Elementary. Machovina will serve as the new assistant principal at Totem Middle School, while Henderson succeeds Irwin as the new principal of Liberty Elementary.

“I’ve been in Sonja’s classes, and her energy and innovation are amazing,” Miller said. “She relates to kids very calmly and effectively.”

“When we heard Gloria was available, we couldn’t resist bringing her back,” Kinoshita said. “And Lynn has got a solid background in instruction.”

Lynn Heimsoth, formerly a teacher in the South Kitsap School District, will serve as principal of Shoultes Elementary.

As of June 24, Berg still has a voicemail box at the Deer Park School District, but she’s already sought to engage with the Marysville community through events such at the June 17 and 18 meetings, not only to keep her previously stated pledge to “hit the ground running, listening and learning,” but also to ensure she’s up to speed when she officially starts her new job on July 1.

“I’m open to meeting with as many constituents and community groups as possible, so that I can learn as much as possible during those golden hours when I’m still new to the school district,” Berg said. “I have no agenda other than continuing the great work that’s already been done in the district, and understanding its future needs.”

During the June 17 Board meeting, Board President Chris Nation reiterated that Berg’s selection was the result of the district’s commitment to soliciting extensive community input, and offered a few final words of tribute to his friend, outgoing Superintendent Dr. Larry Nyland.

“We heard all the voices,” Nation said. “That was what Dr. Nyland was all about, was a focus on student achievement, and everyone coming to the table to talk about it together. Our partnership with the Tulalip Tribes is an example of that.”

“I’m delighted with the work that’s been done, especially in partnership with the Tribes,” Nyland said. “Our staff throughout the district have done a great job.”

Berg aims to ‘hit the ground running’ as Marysville schools’ new superintendent

By Kirk Boxleitner, The Marysville Globe

Courtesy photo.Dr. Becky Berg officially starts as the new superintendent of the Marysville School District on July 1.
Courtesy photo.
Dr. Becky Berg officially starts as the new superintendent of the Marysville School District on July 1.

MARYSVILLE — Dr. Becky Berg is still mapping out her transition between the Deer Park School District, where she currently serves as superintendent, and the Marysville School District, for which she was selected as the new superintendent on March 28, but between now and when she officially starts her new job on July 1, Berg aims to get up to speed in short order.

“I intend to hit the ground running, listening and learning,” said Berg, whose career in education opened with stints as a classroom teacher in the Renton and Enumclaw school districts from 1986-91, after earning her B.A. in education from Eastern Washington University in 1984. “I’m open to meeting with as many constituents and community groups as possible, so that I can learn as much as possible during those golden hours when I’m still new to the school district. I have no agenda other than continuing the great work that’s already been done in the district, and understanding its future needs.”

Indeed, Berg cited what she deemed the healthy relationships between district leaders, staff members, students, families and surrounding community members as one of the traits that drew her to the Marysville School District in the first place.

“I was impressed,” said Berg, whose stints as acting, associate, assistant and full principals in the Bainbridge Island and Mead school districts, the latter in Spokane, ran from 1991 through 2010, when she began her current job as superintendent of the Deer Park School District. “Innovations such as the Small Learning Communities are the kinds of bold measures that it will take to keep up with the needs of the 21st century. This district’s diversity was also a huge draw for me, since I’m looking forward to working with the Tulalip Tribes, the growing Hispanic community and other partners.”

Berg eagerly anticipates familiarizing herself with Marysville as a resident, a process that she referred to as “knitting in” rather than “fitting in.”

“This really isn’t about me, though,” Berg said. “It’s about the Marysville community and its students. This district demonstrates that dynamic, effective education is possible, and I’m incredibly excited to be part of it.”

 

Marysville district interviews proceed

The Marysville School Board has selected six people to be interviewed for the superintendent position.

By Gale Fiege, The Herald

MARYSVILLE — The search for the person to replace Marysville School District’s retiring Superintendent Larry Nyland continues Saturday with public interviews of the candidates.

The Marysville School Board has picked six people to move forward into the first round of preliminary interviews.

They are Edmonds Assistant Superintendent Tony Byrd, Lakewood Superintendent Dennis Haddock, Mount Vernon Superintendent Carl Bruner, Deer Park Superintendent Becky Berg, Orting Superintendent Michelle Curry and Lake Washington School District administrator Jon Holmen.

Preliminary interviews are scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. Saturday in the school district board room, 4220 80th St. NE, Marysville.

Interviews of the semifinalists are open to the public, but school board members plan to ask the questions. People who attend will be given an opportunity to provide written comments. Finalists are to be selected by the board following the interviews Saturday.

Interviews of the finalists are scheduled for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with one candidate each day. School faculty and staff, parents, students and other people who live in the district have the chance to meet the candidates in open forums that are scheduled at 11 a.m., 4:15 and 6:30 p.m. each of the three days, also in the district board room.

The superintendent candidates also plan to tour the school district, meet with principals, administrators and the Tulalip Tribes council.

For more information on the superintendent search, call Jodi Runyon, 360-653-0800.

Superintendent search nears its final steps

By Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe

MARYSVILLE — The search for the Marysville School District’s new superintendent is heading into its homestretch, and as he has throughout the process, MSD Board President Chris Nation is encouraging community members to take part in the selection.

The six candidates whom the Marysville School District Board of Directors have selected to move forward to the first round of preliminary interviews on Saturday, March 23, are Dr. Becky Berg, Dr. Carl Bruner, Dr. Tony Byrd, Michelle Curry, Dr. Dennis Haddock and Jon Holmen.

“Each interview should take about an hour and 10 minutes to an hour and 15 minutes each,” Nation said. “If we start at 8 a.m., we should be able to wrap it up that Saturday by 5 p.m. If members of the public want to attend and submit feedback to the Board in writing, we’d only ask that they do so for all six candidates, since that’s only fair, but they can drop in to observe them at any time during the day.”

According to Nation, the Marysville School Board will ask questions of the candidates in the MSD Service Center Board room, and narrow the selection from six semifinalists to three finalists that evening, based on those interviews, so that the three days of finalist candidates’ interviews and visits to the district — from Monday, March 25, through Wednesday, March 27 — will devote one full day to each candidate.

Marysville School District staff, parents, students and community members will be able to meet each day’s candidate during open forums scheduled at 11 a.m., 4:15 p.m. and 6:30 p.m., again in the MSD Service Center Board room.

In the wake of the applicants’ files being screened on March 15, Nation reiterated the Marysville School District’s commitment to conducting its superintendent selection process as transparently as possible.

“This is not just the decision of the Board, but of the community as a whole,” Nation said. “We wanted to make sure that the community and school district staff were involved in this process, because the new superintendent will be a leader to both, hopefully for years to come. Through observation and feedback, we hope the community will help us choose a superintendent who fits the needs of our community, because if that person doesn’t understand our relationships, especially with the Tulalip Tribes, they might not get done what’s needed. Everyone has to be on board for this.”

The Marysville School District Service Center Board room is located at 4220 80th St. NE. The full schedule for the candidate visitations is posted on the MSD website at www.msvl.k12.wa.us. For more information on the search process, contact Jodi Runyon by phone at 360-653-0800 or via email at jodi_runyon@msvl.k12.wa.us.

Schools take proactive approach to safety

From left, Marysville Police School Resource Officer Dave White takes a moment during lunch at Marysville Getchell High School to chat with students Dalton Adcock, Curtis Combs and Bionca Perez. Photo: Kirk Boxleitner.
From left, Marysville Police School Resource Officer Dave White takes a moment during lunch at Marysville Getchell High School to chat with students Dalton Adcock, Curtis Combs and Bionca Perez. Photo: Kirk Boxleitner.

By  Kirk Boxleitner, Marysville Globe Reporter

MARYSVILLE — In the wake of December’s school shootings in Connecticut, schools across America have become more conscious of their safety and security procedures, and the Marysville School District is no exception.

However, the district’s security manager and one of its school resource officers from the Marysville Police Department explained that Marysville schools have already adopted a proactive approach to safeguarding their children.

Marysville Police School Resource Officer Dave White has built up a rapport with the students at Marysville Getchell High School over the course of the past four years, since a year before the campus opened, and while he also covers the district’s three middle schools, he credits his presence on campus at Marysville Getchell with elevating his visibility and approachability with students and staff alike.

“It’s been brought to my attention when students have been doing things they shouldn’t, and I’ve been lucky enough to talk to them in ways that have preempted them from committing criminal acts, either at school or elsewhere,” White said. “After [the Dec. 14 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn.], the staff has been even more interested in using our expertise to make the schools safer.”

Just as the Tulalip Tribal Police Department has donated a part-time SRO to cover the Quil Ceda and Tulalip elementary schools, as well as the 10th Street Middle School and the Heritage and Arts & Technology high schools, so too is the Marysville Police Department providing its two SROs to the school district free of charge, with White’s fellow SRO covering the Marysville-Pilchuck and Mountain View high schools. However, this leaves the rest of Marysville’s elementary schools relatively uncovered, which is why White explained that Marysville Police regular patrol officers are conducting walk-throughs of those elementary schools several times a day.

“We appreciate the huge service that the Marysville Police Department is doing for us here, because we have absolutely no money for it,” said Greg Dennis, security manager for the school district. “After Sandy Hook, everyone asked, ‘What if that happened here?’ Here at Marysville, we’ve been asking, ‘How do we prevent that from happening here?’”

The school district’s measures already include SROs, 11 FTE security guards, rapid-response maps that allow 911 responders to arrive at exact locations within 1-2 minutes, and regular drills for fires, lockdowns and earthquakes.

“Going forward, we’re working with our safety committee and law enforcement to review our campuses and our emergency plans,” said Jodi Runyon, executive assistant to the superintendent. “The city police and county sheriff’s office have been very willing to work with us. As the president and state legislators weigh in on what can and should be done, we will take a second and third look at our procedures to make cost-effective adjustments.”

Marysville starts search for next superintendent

Christopher Andersson, North County Outlook, http://www.northcountyoutlook.com

The Marysville school board has begun the process of finding a new superintendent by contracting with Northwest Leadership Associates to help conduct the selection process.

After nine years of serving as Marysville’s superintendent, Dr. Larry Nyland announced on Jan. 3 he will retire at the end of this school year.

The school board said they appreciated the weight of the decision and that this process isn’t being taken lightly.

“We know this is a major assignment for the school board. It is the one thing we do that matters the most,” said school board member Cindy Erickson.

The board wants to find a replacement who will be as successful for the district as Nyland was during his nine years.

“I hope we only have to make this decision every nine or ten years,” said school board member Tom Albright.

The school board hired Northwest Leadership Associates during its Jan. 7 meeting.

Northwest Leadership Associates is a consulting firm that has specialized in screening and selecting superintendents and other school system leaders since 1999.

“We’re certain that Northwest Leadership Associates is going to deliver on their promise to not only find a great new leader to follow Dr. Nyland but also to involve the community,” said school board member Pete Lundberg.

The school board is anxious for input from the Marysville community about what they want from a superintendent and hired Northwest Leadership Associates in part because of their experience in gathering community opinions.

Lundberg hopes that a full cross-section of the community comes out to express their desire and looks forward to hearing opinions “from people of all walks of life.”

The board has wanted to reach out to the community for more than just the superintendent issue and hopes that this public process will help jumpstart that.

Nyland said he is encouraged that this will help get community members motivated to engage with the school district and hopefully, he said, this will be just the first round of community engagement.

Community relations are important because the superintendent not only runs a school district, but has to maintain and build its relationships with the community, said school board president Chris Nation.

Which is why, Erickson said, the new superintendent needs to be “somebody we believe in that can move the district forward. Someone who can continue to build relationships both within the community, within our school and within our partnerships.”

The school district has been improving steadily over the last decade, said board members, and they want to find someone who can continue that progress.

“We have a lot of things that seem to be headed in the right direction. We have a very motivated staff and it’s important we continue in that direction,” Lundberg noted.

Board members expressed that Nyland will be remembered and that whoever replaces him will have a tough act to follow.

“Larry, I wanted to say, you will be missed. You’ve proven yourself, not just in education, but also in who you are and how you’ve taken things that have not always been easy to take,” said Erickson.

“[Nyland]’s here in the morning. He’s here in the evening. He’s always sending me e-mails about new educational programs he’s found on the Internet. It’s 24/7 to him, and it truly pushes me to do more,” said Nation.

Nyland’s retirement announcement and personal message to the community are available at www.msvl.k12.wa.us.

Northwest Leadership Associates will be conducting surveys and public meetings to collect community opinions over the coming months.

 

Upcoming meetings:

The Marysville School District will hold two meetings for district parents, Marysville and Tulalip community members and district partners learn about, and provide input, for the new superintendent search process.

Meetings will be held at the Marysville School District Service Center Board Room, located at 4220 80th Street NE, Marysville, 98270, on Tuesday, 1/29/13 at 7:00 PM and Thursday, 1/31/13 at 6:00 PM. Both meetings are open to the public.

An electronic survey is available on the district website at www.msvl.k12.wa.us.
For more information on the search process, contact Jodi Runyon at jodi_runyon@msvl.k12.wa.us or (360) 653-0800.

Marysville School District Superintendent, Dr. Nyland to retire

Marysville School District No. 25
4220 80th Street NE
Marysville, WA 98270
p. 360-653-0800 f. 360-629-1990

 

 January 18, 2013

Dear Parents and Guardians,

After serving the Marysville School District for 9 years, Dr. Nyland has announced his decision to retire effective June 30, 2013. Although we are saddened by his departure, we personally want to thank him for his many great accomplishments.

To assist in our upcoming superintendent search, the Board of Directors has hired the consulting firm, Northwest Leadership Associates based in Washington. They provide years of knowledge and a network of individuals that will enable us to recruit the most qualified candidates for this important position.

The Board realizes the importance of this outcome and will make every effort to allow for our parents, staff and members the Marysville and Tulalip communities to participate in the selection of our next superintendent and to provide a search that is “open” and as “transparent” as possible. As part of the process, we will be collecting stakeholder input from a variety of means by conducting or attending over 25 community and staff forums over the course of the next several weeks and providing opportunities to fill out written and electronic surveys to assist us in choosing a new educational leader.

Please join us at the upcoming forum for all parents: Tuesday, 1/29/13, 7:00 pm, Marysville School District Service Center Board Room, 4220 80th Street NE. Your participation is a very important part of this process and we look forward to seeing you. We also invite you to complete an electronic survey: Superintendent Profile Survey. This survey will provide you with an opportunity to have your voice heard during our search process. For more information visit the district website at http://www.msvl.k12.wa.us/.

On behalf of the Board of Directors I would like to thank you for your time in this important process.

Respectfully,

Chris Nation, President

Marysville superintendent announces retirement plans

http://www.northcountyoutlook.com

 

Larry NylandDr. Larry Nyland has shepherded the Marysville School District as its superintendent since 2004, but he has announced his plans to retire at the end of the current school year.

Nyland, 64, has been invested in public education for the past 42 years, with a career that has taken him from Oak Harbor to Alaska, then back to Washington with positions in Pasco, Shoreline and the Highline School District before coming to Marysville.

He inherited a tough climate in Marysville: a 49-day teachers’ strike in 2003 had resulted in declining enrollment, and citizens hadn’t passed a school bond issue in 16 years. Nyland focused on engaging the community in the district’s education goals, working cooperatively with the teachers’ union, and solidifying partnerships with the Tulalip Tribes as well as local community service organizations.

Graduation rates have risen by 20 percent over his tenure, and schools within the district have been recognized by the U.S. Department of Education and the state’s Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) for their achievements.

This year, the district’s Board of Directors was named School Board of the Year, a reflection of Nyland’s consistent messaging and encouragement.

“I love thinking and dreaming about what we can become, about the needs we can fill, the lives we will change, the future we are building for our community,” Nyland remarked in written comments to district staff.

“The district is once again at a turning point,” he continued. “New challenges lie ahead: new national standards and exams; new elections for levies, bonds and technology; and new leadership in many district roles. Now is the time to launch new dreams and follow them through to fruition.”

School board president Chris Nation praised Dr. Nyland “for his leadership, dedication and commitment to improving the lives of the children of the Marysville and Tulalip communities, providing excellent professional development opportunities for staff, and his organizational leadership district-wide.”

Jodi Runyon, the superintendent’s executive assistant, said, “Dr. Nyland came to Marysville at a time when we needed him most and he has done great things for our district and the community. We will be challenged to sustain the work that’s been done and continue to build upon the strong educational and organizational foundation he helped create.”

Nyland was named the state’s Superintendent of the Year in 2006, and the lifelong educator will no doubt continue to be involved in Marysville’s educational goals as a member of the community.

“I hope to still be engaged in education,” he said. “I still have a real heart for students.”

The process of selecting a new superintendent will begin on Monday, as the school board chooses a consultant search firm. Nation noted that the board will seek community and staff input to establish criteria for the district’s next leader.