Ronan School District School Board selected the current director of curriculum, Sandra Beal, as the new superintendent during a special meeting on Nov. 10. She’ll step into her new role on July 1, replacing current superintendent Mark Johnston.

Beal is starting her sixth year as the director of curriculum with the Ronan district after previously serving as the middle school principal at Ronan for four years. She completed a bachelor's degree in health and physical education at Montana State University Billings and later completed her master's degree in School Administration at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania.

“(Sandra) has always exceeded my expectations,” Johnston stated in an email about Beal. “Her organizational skills are second to none. She has also brought in significant amounts of money with her grant-writing ability.”

During last Monday’s meeting, the board held interviews with the two finalists, both of whom are in leadership positions with the Ronan district.  

The other candidate was Frank Jobe, who is starting his sixth year as the middle school principal and was previously the high school vice principal for six years. Jobe completed his bachelor's degree in Secondary Education and a master's degree in educational leadership at the University of Montana. 

The board decided to hire internally for this position, which received some pushback during public comment.

Both candidates were asked the same questions during a 30-minute interview, which included how they would handle conflicts, cell phone policies, conflicts of interest and the school’s security and safety. They also fielded questions from district teachers and staff prior to the board interview.

Canidates were asked how they would approach supervising friends or relatives in the small community they work within, Jobe responded by saying he would not worry about anyone’s last name, and he would stress that it’s not personal or about their friendship; it’s simply about their behavior.

Beal approached the question by saying it is important to have clear expectations and policies for staff to follow.

The candidates were asked what their style is when it comes to consulting and collaborating with people who are impacted by their decisions. Jobe explained that when it comes to something new, he likes to collaborate with people and think thoroughly about the idea.

“I like it when people come to my office, I like it when they reach out to me say, ‘We need to have a conversation,’” Jobe said. “It's important for everyone to feel that they can do that and be able to come up with a solution.” 

Beal responded that transparency is key. She said that frequent and continued communication is important. 

“It's imperative to make sure that everybody's on the same page, and when things come up, you can talk through those things,” she said. 

Both candidates were asked how they would lead the school in developing and maintaining appropriate security and safety. Jobe explained they have had ALICE training in the past, which is active shooter response training that stands for alert, lockdown, inform, counter and evacuate. He also said they had a security analysis done a few years ago, which recommended they lock their doors.

The school now uses fobs to enter the buildings, and he would like to do another analysis in the future. He also is interested in working with Lake County Sheriff, Ronan Police, EMS and the fire department.

Beal explained that the district has crisis protocols in place that likely needs to be updated. She said the well-being of faculty and students is essential, and they always must fall back on those protocols.

“You always want to call law enforcement. You always want to make sure that, if needed, you give out appropriate information to families and stakeholders, after an emergency or a crisis,” Beal said. “You always want to meet and discuss with your stakeholders preventive measures to take so that it doesn't happen again. You want to be proactive as much as possible.”

Once both interviews were conducted, the board welcomed public comments and reviewed background checks.

April Charlo expressed concerns during public comment about the board not opening this position to external applicants to give Natives an opportunity to apply. Charlo noted the high population of Natives the district serves and asked for diversity and representation before the board made a decision. 

“… I can tell you, from a Native perspective, there are highly, highly qualified individuals out there with education degrees that could apply for this position and make it really difficult for you to decide,” Charlo said.

After another comment requesting diversity within the leadership of Ronan Schools, the board motioned to approve Beal as the new superintendent, and voted unanimously in favor of her appointment. 

Johnston explained in an email that he knows some questions were raised about why the school board only opened the position up to internal candidates. He stated that promoting employees from within strengthens an organization.

“Both internal candidates already understand the district's culture, expectations, and processes, allowing them to step into the superintendent role with confidence and contribute quickly,” Johnston stated. “Also, hiring from within shows the entire district that hard work and dedication are genuinely rewarded. This model is used by almost every successful business or entity.”

Johnston also noted that Beal had developed a strong working relationship with tribal educators and helped the district cultivate a robust relationship with CSKT Tribal Education.

"Know that the Ronan School District could not have picked a more qualified applicant,” he wrote, noting that he's been told that she'll also be its first female superintendent. 

“I know that this district is in great hands and Sandra will make it even better.”