West Valley fills superintendent position

A Washington school principal has been selectd as the new superintendent for West Valley School.

Cindy Risher, who is the principal of Ocosta Elementary in Westport, Washington, is set to take over at West Valley School beginning July 1.

She replaces outgoing Superintendent Cal Ketchum, who submitted his resignation in February, to run for the Flathead County Superintendent of Schools position. His last day is June 30.

Risher holds a Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, a Master of Education and a Doctor of Education all from the University of Mississippi.

“My short-term goal would be to get to know the people within the school and the West Valley community to begin to understand what they view as needs and wants from the school district and then working to integrate those priorities into what our school goals are,” Risher said.

“I have a belief that schools serve their communities and in order for that to go well there has to be good communication and collaboration.”

Risher said that belief speaks to how she views her role as a school administrator.

“I believe I’m there to serve the school and prioritize student needs within the school. I think it is a moral obligation to prepare students to be good citizens,” she said.

RISHER HAS served in her current position at Ocosta Elementary since 2018. The K-6 school has an enrollment of about 330 students. Prior to that, she was an assistant principal in DeSoto County Schools in Mississippi and supervised between 970 to 1,700 students.

For comparison, West Valley is a K-8 school district with an enrollment of approximately 780 students.

Risher was was selected based on a decade of administrative and teaching experience at the K-8 level, according to school board chair Stephanie Nadasi and vice-chair Marilyn Hedstrom who provided a joint statement in an email to the Daily Inter Lake, which said:

“She believes the path to graduation begins in kindergarten and that every student can succeed in a positive educational environment. Her strengths include building professional learning communities and developing long-term strategic plans for her school districts while actively engaging parents and community members.”

She impressed the interview committee with her intelligence, professionalism, and candor, they noted.

“She will be a great addition to the West Valley team and an innovative educational leader for the district and community,” they added.

Prior to accepting the West Valley position, Risher was also a interviewed for one of Kalispell Public Schools’ assistant superintendent positions, which was filled by Peter Fusaro, director of Trades and Industrial Arts at Flathead Valley Community College.

Greg Dern, superintendent of Circle Public Schools and principal of Circle High School in Circle, Montana, was also interviewed for the West Valley superintendent position.

ONE OF the issues Risher may be tackling at West Valley is the continued growth. In the May school election, voters turned down $27.3 million bond that would have been used to purchase land and build a new middle school.

“I will say the overcrowding in the current school of course will be a top priority,” Risher said.

She said she’ll work with current school leadership and the school board trustees to continue exploring different options in addressing long-term growth.

Reporter Hilary Matheson may be reached at 406-758-4431 or hmatheson@dailyinterlake.com.