West Valley school leader honored

West Valley School District Superintendent Cal Ketchum has been named superintendent of the year by the Northwest Montana Association of School Superintendents.

Ketchum, who is completing his fourth year at West Valley, was selected by his peers in the nine regions that make up the association.

“I felt honored to get it. There are so many other people that deserve it, too. It’s nice to win something from people who know what you do,” Ketchum said.

Ketchum will receive his award at a conference in the fall and be considered for the national superintendent of the year.

West Valley is Ketchum’s first job in a superintendent’s position. Some of the highlights of his tenure include passage of a $6.8 million bond request and completion of a 36,000-square-foot addition in 2015, along with other building upgrades.

Ketchum said other accomplishments in the district have included curriculum changes and improvements in the way certified staffers are evaluated.

“We adopted the Lucy Calkins writing program — that was last year — and we started reading curriculum for K-4 called Reading Wonders,” Ketchum said.

But the work is not done, Ketchum said. The district is always looking for ways to improve.

“What it all comes down to is creating a great environment, a safe learning environment for students,” Ketchum said.

In the coming year he plans to start an external accreditation review through the nonprofit AdvancED.

“AdvancED comes in and measures how you’re doing overall as far as curriculum and teaching and helps you reach your goals as far as setting goals down the road. They also look at parent involvement and culture of the school,” Ketchum said. “It just increases accountability.”

Hilary Matheson is a reporter for The Daily Inter Lake. She may be reached at 758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.