Kalispell Public Schools taps assistant superintendent for top job

The Kalispell Public Schools Board of Trustees voted unanimously Tuesday to make Matt Jensen district superintendent.

Jensen is currently an assistant superintendent of Kalispell Public Schools, a position he’s held since 2021. Before becoming assistant superintendent, he was superintendent of the Bigfork School District for seven years. 

Jensen will succeed interim Superintendent Randy Cline. With four decades of experience under his belt, Cline came out of retirement last year to temporarily take on the job after former Superintendent Micah Hill departed for Missoula. 

In an interview Wednesday, board Chair Heather Asher said Jensen has “really stepped up to the plate” during the time of transition between administrators.

“Matt has displayed great leadership through this process of having an interim superintendent and stepping in when he’s needed,” Asher said.

Asher noted that he is familiar with and focused on district priorities such as personalized, competency-based learning, school safety and improving communication with the wider community, which extends to 13 outlying partner school districts whose students eventually attend Flathead and Glacier high schools.

“Right now, we’re really trying to mend a bridge with our community. To me, I felt since he was born and raised here … he knows our community well, knows our values, and knows the struggles we’re facing to try and pass levies,” Asher said.

Jensen attended Cayuse Prairie School and is a 1999 Flathead High School grad. He holds a master's degree in education administration and supervision from the University of Phoenix and a bachelor’s degree in history and political science with secondary teaching certification from the University of Montana. He obtained his superintendent certification from the University of Montana.

Trustees also interviewed candidate Kimberly Fricker for the position. Fricker is former superintendent of the Rim of the World Unified School District in California.

“We were very impressed with both candidates,” Asher said. “Both candidates were more than qualified.”

Initially, trustees selected four candidates to interview at a Jan. 25 board meeting, however, finalist Tom Meyer withdrew his application after the board’s decision, citing other interview opportunities. Last Sunday, finalist Joseph Libby withdrew his application without citing a reason, according to Andrew Vigeland of the Montana School Boards Association. The district hired the association to conduct its superintendent search.

Meyer is superintendent of Bellevue Community School District in Bellevue, Iowa and Libby is superintendent of Sibley East Public Schools in Arlington, Minnesota.

About eight people spoke during public comment, including central office staff, a teacher, a retired teacher and a community member.

“The board engaged in substantial deliberations in open session and considered both written public comments and in-person public comments from those who attended,” Vigeland said.

Pending signing a three-year contract and at a salary of $175,000, Jensen will assume superintendent duties July 1.

“It’s quite the honor to be selected and entrusted with leading the Kalispell Public Schools system,” Jensen said told the Daily Inter Lake on Wednesday.

Before stepping into the position, there is still work to finish this school year, he said.

“Our biggest challenge right now, in front of us, is budgetary. We ran safety levies and tech levies in the fall that failed and were dealing with a negative budget,” he said. 

Going into the position, Jensen has a list of priorities to tackle that, in addition to the budget and what Asher mentioned earlier, includes long-range facility planning and addressing enrollment growth.

The Kalispell district has six elementary schools, one middle school, two high schools, an alternative educational center and an agricultural education center with around 6,148 students enrolled. The district employs more than 750 regular part-time and full-time staff members.

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