Principal, builder vie for FVCC board position

With two candidates currently running to represent Flathead Valley Community College on the Board of Trustees, voters in the Glacier/Flathead high school districts have a decision to make between a longtime educator and longtime businessman.

Ballots were mailed April 17 and are due back Tuesday, May 5.

Glacier High School Principal Callie Langohr, the incumbent, was selected by the board from a group of candidates earlier this year. She was selected to temporarily fill the seat left vacant after trustee Ralene Sliter died in January. 

Just three months after Langohr filled the position, the trustee seat is up for election. 

Langohr is running against Terry Kramer, the owner and chief executive officer of Kramer Enterprises, a general contractor and home-building business.

Kramer launched a media campaign this week espousing his experience in business, education and community service. He said he believes his background in the private market will benefit the college’s work programs.

“I believe I have the most diverse experience to bring to the table,” he said. “I want to work on the work-force training programs. I’ve already been involved with that and want to continue my work.”

Kramer has been in the building business for 41 years, the only break coming from a work injury. He spent that time substitute teaching in School District 5. He went to the University of Arizona after high school and also spent a decade as a nontraditional student at junior colleges, so he said he understands the mentality of both traditional and nontraditional students.

He hopes to continue the path the college has taken and help bolster the trades programs.

“Running for this position is something I’ve thought about for quite a long time,” he said. “We do a lot of things through the college and the building trades. I think I can use my background to improve them.”

Langohr cites her extensive education experience as the best reason to keep her on the college board. Her position as principal of Glacier High School offers her a unique perspective for Flathead Valley Community College, she said.

“This is an absolute perfect fit for a Kalispell high school principal,” she said. “There are currently people serving on the board with incredible skill sets, but the biggest thing I would bring is to add to the eyes and ears of the students.”

A Flathead High School graduate, Langohr earned a degree in math and taught for a year before joining the McDonald’s Corporation, eventually managing branches in several states. She got back into education in the early 1990s with a degree in counseling. A few years at Flathead High convinced her to go into administration, and she has been principal of first Flathead and then Glacier high school since 1999.

The principal’s job and a recent unsuccessful application to be assistant superintendent of Kalispell Public Schools have left a lot on her plate, but Langohr said she is more than capable of handling the job.

“I wouldn’t even throw my hat in the ring if I didn’t have enough time,” she said. “I am passionate about Flathead Valley Community College and I am incredibly excited for the possibilities that lie before it.”