Ark Valley News - School district hires 16 new teachers

School district hires 16 new teachers
By Chris Strunk
Last Updated: August 13, 2015

As more than 2,800 Valley Center students head back to school this week, many will be greeted by new teachers and some will have a new principal.

The school district hired 16 new classroom teachers, a couple of counselors and one principal to start the 2015-16 school year. Last year, 11 new teachers joined the district.

Two of the departed teachers are now principals at schools in the Hutchinson district. Two left education altogether.

Superintendent Cory Gibson said this year's turnover number is normal.

Gibson said he was impressed by the group of new employees.

"The people we hired are well experienced and well educated," he said.

Many of the teachers hold master's degrees or are working toward one.

The entire staff has an average of 13 years of experience in education, up from 12 years last school year. Additionally, 45 percent of the district's teachers have advanced college degrees, up from 42 percent in 2010.

Two new employees — Drenda Higgins, a second-grade teacher at West Elementary, and Nancy Roth, a counselor at Wheatland Elementary — are married to area school district superintendents. Higgins' husband, Chad Higgins, is the new superintendent of the nearby Maize district, while Roth's husband, Larry Roth, is the new superintendent in neighboring Sedgwick.

Valley Center's only new administrator is Adelyn Soellner, who is principal at Wheatland Elementary. She replaced interim principal Andy Gottlob, who was filling in after Kathy Bradham resigned last year.

"She is a great balance to our entire administrative cabinet team," Gibson said of Soellner. "I almost forget that she's new because she just fits in so nicely."

Valley Center Middle School and Wheatland Elementary will have new counselors.

Courtney Traxson takes over for Rob Glenn, who is on military leave, while Roth is the new counselor at Wheatland.

The district has one additional section of elementary this year to handle growing numbers in kindergarten through fourth grade. The district also hired an additional half-time Spanish teacher for the high school, a position the school board approved two years ago but was unable to fill last year.

Valley Center is anticipating an enrollment increase of about 70 students.

That number could balloon when enrollment figures start rolling in. From Sept. 20, 2014, through the end of the 2014-15 school year, the district gained 64 students. If most of those students return, it wouldn't take many new students this fall to eclipse the 70-student estimate.

The district will use that number to apply for additional state aid through a new extraordinary funds system the state set up as part of the block grant funding approved in the spring.

Districts this year will receive block grants based on the number of students it had in 2014-15, which doesn't account for enrollment increases.

Gibson said the extraordinary funds, based on the number of additional students, could total about $270,000 for the district if it is approved.

Gibson said he likes to see the district grow at a reasonable rate.

"It's more difficult as a superintendent when you see year after year after year of decreases," he said. "When you have growth, that's a good sign for both the community and the school district. But if your growth is too rapid, your facilities and infrastructure may not be there to accommodate that growth."

Gibson said 2 to 3 percent growth, which the district has seen on average for the past several years, is sustainable.