Helena Flats principal selected for Ruder Elementary position

Helena Flats School Principal Allison Hawes will be the new principal of Ruder Elementary School in Columbia Falls.

The decision to select Hawes was unanimous at a Columbia Falls School District board meeting Monday. She was one of four finalists who interviewed for the position, including Tina Blair, who recently resigned as principal at West Valley School in Kalispell; Josh Gibbs, superintendent/principal of Seeley Lake Elementary, in Seeley Lake; and Henry Mack, principal of Roosevelt Elementary School in Dickinson, North Dakota.

The district received 16 applications for the position, which opened Dec. 21, 2023, and closed Jan. 18, according to Superintendent Cory Dziowgo.