A couple times a month, Whitefish School District Superintendent Kate Orozco asks a teacher to relinquish their classroom so she can work with the students.

“From the youngest on up to the high school, it’s important that I know what experiences are happening in the classroom,” she said. “It’s also about feeding my spirit.”

Orozco spent 20 years teaching in the classroom before moving into professional development and administration. For any superintendent, it can be easy to get bogged down in “buses, budgets and boilers,” but Orozco said it’s important to be reminded why she chose a career in education — the students.

“Most superintendents began their lives as teachers and now being three degrees removed from those students can be a frustration,” she said. “It’s essential that we remind ourselves that we’re here to influence the learning lives of kids.”

The Montana Association of School Superintendents this fall honored eight school superintendents in the state for their leadership and success in providing learning opportunities for students. Orozco was among them and was named Superintendent of the Year for the northwest region.

Orozco said she was surprised by the honor because she sees all the superintendents in the region as being deserving of the award.

“I feel a greater sense of responsibility to our kids and teachers [because of the award,]” she said. “Even to my colleagues — the other superintendents.”

Orozco took over leadership of the Whitefish district in 2011 after having served as an associate superintendent with the North Platte Public Schools in North Platte, Neb.

She left her hometown of Gillette, Wyo., to attend Gonzaga University in Spokane, Wash, and went on to earn her bachelors, masters and doctorate degrees there and later an administrative degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney. She spent years teaching mostly in fifth- and sixth-grade classrooms in the Spokane school system at a school that she said was one of the most economically impacted in the city.

“I learned that children who face great challenges often have great gifts, strengths and assets,” she said.

Orozco worked with the Small Schools Project, a Seattle-based group that offered professional development coaching to school districts. She also worked as an adjunct professor with Gonzaga.

Orozco initially went to college with the goal of becoming a pediatrician, but after graduating from college and entering the classroom to teach she stayed in education.

“Teaching is the hardest, most challenging job,” she said. “Those teachers who return to the job with enthusiasm every autumn are those who have a passion for children and learning.”

Sitting in the superintendent’s chair today, Orozco said the hierarchy of importance in the school district should place students at the top.

“The students are the most important, followed by the teachers because they impact the students’ lives most directly,” she said. “The superintendent is at the bottom as the least important because they are the most removed from the children.”

Orozco mentions a lengthy list of challenges facing school districts including shrinking budgets, changes in education standards, family challenges that come with uncertain economic times, and the need to keep schools safe. She believes Whitefish schools are great, while being at the beginning of a journey to become even better.

“What I’m most excited about is that we’re seeing the results of building a strong learning community for kids and adults,” she said. “The district has set the goal to make sure every student is ready for college, career and citizenship. We are raising the bar. Despite the challenges we’re giving everything in terms of our goal.”