Grover settles in as superintendent

“I'm excited,” he said. “I'm very hopeful we'll have a great upcoming school year.”

Construction going on at Falls High School left the new superintendent without a permanent office, but that doesn't seem to stop the former dean of students and athletic director from encouraging an open-door policy.

“I will be approachable,” he said of his new role. “I'll talk with anyone. I'm open to suggestions, recommendations, ideas – that's how we get better.”

The Falls School Board in May appointed Grover, who has worked in the district for 16 years, to the position vacated Monday by Nordy Nelson. Some board members wanted Grover in the position because of his commitment to the district. The lead administrator position has a track record of a two-year turnover and board members expressed the desire to retain some stability in the district and help achieve long-term goals.

And, according to Grover, he's in it for the long haul.

“I plan on retiring from this position,” he said. “Granted all goes well.”

Familiar territory

While the position is new to Grover, it is not unfamiliar to him. He served as assistant superintendent under Don Langen for a portion of the 2009-2010 school year, he said.

“When he resigned, I finished out his contract,” he added.

The experience prepared him for his new job, but Grover admits when he first started in education, he never imagined sitting in the top seat.

“I love teaching...I truly still enjoy it,” he said. “I miss being in the classroom. Contact with students is different in this position.”

As a former math teacher, he said he feels his love of numbers can only be a benefit to the superintendent duties.

“It'll definitely help when it comes to doing the budget and things like that,” he said. “And we have our annual audit right away in September, so I'm busy preparing for that.”

District goals

Coming in to a new position, Grover said he doesn't have major plans that will result in extreme changes, but he said he does have specific goals in mind. Toward the top of his priority list sits improving communication between everyone district wide.

“I think that's where we've dropped the ball on certain things,” he said. “It's not that we don't communicate, but we need to improve.”

Going forward, Grover said he feels any changes and transitions that will be brought out in the district will run smoother if information is communicated better. One example, he said, is moving fifth-grade classrooms from West End Elementary back to Falls Elementary.

“It wasn't communicated very well,” he said, noting he supports the action approved by the board in May. “Communication, however, would have been better to allow for input...We need to be open to suggestions.”

Depending on situations that arise, Grover said one of his ideas to help widen the doorway of communication is weekly letters to school board members to keep them abreast on happenings within the school.

“It's not going to be a 10-page dialogue, but just a summary of what happens over the last week,” he said of the plan. “It'll keep them informed, that way if someone approaches them or gives them a call, they'll be aware of what's going on.”

He added administration is also working to improve the school's presence on social media as another avenue to keep the community and other school staff members informed.

“If we're going to make a change or something is happening within the school, we need to be up front and honest about it,” he said. “Facebook can help that communication piece.”

And then there's student enrollment.

Coming off a year that saw a sharp decline in student numbers, Grover knows it'll be a challenge to continue addressing the issue.

“I don't know if we've seen the end of it,” he said. “We don't have a real thumb on how many more students we will and could lose. We are trying to assess why people are leaving – is it something we did or was it beyond our control – we're trying to get better at doing what we're doing.”

On the positive side, the superintendent said he is confident changes happening at both the high school and elementary levels will help the district retain students as well as bring back some they may have been lost to neighboring districts.

Offering concurrent enrollment classes, or college in the school, will be a big drive, he hopes, to keep juniors and seniors in desks at Falls High School instead of enrolling in the Post Secondary Enrollment Option program at Rainy River Community College or elsewhere.

“It's going to be an exciting year,” he said. “We hope to build the Bronco pride back up through having more of the student body here.”

Addressing issues at the elementary level, he said, is more of a challenge, however, making it the best possible place it can be is a top priority.

“We are going to promote a better environment and keep up with technology,” he said. “We also will continue the push to have lower class sizes, which I think is really important.”

Bottom line – Grover is confident the district is heading in the right direction and he said he looks forward to the year ahead.

“The door is open – stop in, call, or email, that's why I'm here," he said. “And that's the way it should be. We're here to serve the public. This is a public school and we want it to be as viable as possible.”