New deans hired for elementary schools

A second-grade teacher from Marinette and a physical education teacher who coaches football in Marion have been hired to help manage student disciplinary issues in Shawano elementary schools.

The Shawano School Board voted Monday to hire Brian Morstad and Matt Peterson as the new deans of students at Hillcrest Primary School and Olga Brener Intermediate School.

The two new positions were created after a management consultant found that Shawano elementary school principals were spending too much time on student discipline and were being distracted from other important management duties.

Morstad and Peterson each will be paid $58,100 a year for the current school year.

School Superintendent Gary Cumberland said both were “excellent choices” for the positions they will be filling at their respective schools in Shawano.

“I believe these individuals will offer the needed support at each of their buildings to help create the environment needed for student success,” Cumberland said.

Morstad, who teaches second grade in Marinette, will become dean of students overseeing 635 students at Hillcrest Primary, which also includes LEADS Primary Charter School.

Peterson, who teaches elementary physical education and coaches football in Marion, will oversee 553 students at Olga Brener.

Neither could be reached for comment.

Hillcrest Primary Principal Troy Edwards said Morstad has many years of elementary school education and has a track record of working collaboratively with others while bringing a positive attitude to work.

“I heard consistently that Brian has strong people skills, especially with children, and that he is good at building relationships,” Edwards said.

Olga Brener Principal Terri Schultz said Peterson likewise has a good reputation for having a strong work ethic and an ability to build relationships with colleagues and students.

“Brener was looking for a strong team player who understands that relationships are necessary to fully educate our students,” Schultz said. “Matt’s experience with this age of students, along with his coaching background to bring the best out of people, are key strengths that the team was looking for.”

Peterson is scheduled to start his new job Nov. 7; Morstad’s start date was not available.

Both were hired from among 48 applicants for the dean of student positions.

According to school district records, Morstad has 11 years of experience teaching second and third grade in Arizona and Wisconsin. He has been with the Marinette School District since 2011.

Peterson has 15 years of experience teaching physical education at various Wisconsin school districts. For the past two years, he has been with the Marion School District, where he also serves as junior varsity football coach and varsity football assistant coach.

The board approved their hirings Monday along with a new 2016-17 school district budget that includes $180,000 for salaries and fringe benefits for the two new deans of students.

The budget, which also includes another $100,000 for a new human resources coordinator recommended by the management consultant, sets spending overall at $38.4 million, down from $38.6 million last year. Property taxes will total $12.9 million, down from $13.1 million.

The human resources coordinator position has not yet been filled.

The consulting firm Springsted Inc. issued a report in September highlighting management issues in the school district, including the staffing shortfalls at the elementary schools, as well as excessive staffing at the high school level.

The report also suggested that most administrators are underpaid, that many are unsure of job duties, that bills often are not paid on time, and that administrative staff should be more centralized in one location.

The decisions to create the two dean of student positions and the human resources coordinator position are the first to result directly from the study.