People Watch
School Administrator, January 2017


Bradley D. Bergstrom
Thief River Falls, Minn., Public Schools has a new superintendent in Bradley Bergstrom. Bergstrom spent the previous 14 years in the Austin, Minn., Public Schools, where he served as human resources director for two years, high school principal and assistant principal, and area learning center director. He began his career as a high school social studies teacher and dean of students in Fergus Falls, Minn., where he subsequently became dean of students and director of the alternative studies program. Bergstrom has been an AASA member since 2016.



Baron R. Davis
Richland School District Two in Columbia, S.C., has named Baron Davis its superintendent-elect after two years as assistant superintendent. Davis has worked in the Richland district since 1999, first as an assistant high school principal, then as a middle school and high school principal. Davis also served as a leadership coach with the South Carolina Department of Education. He earned a Ph.D. in educational counseling from the University of South Carolina. He has been an AASA member since 2015.



Sherry Durkee
After three years as assistant superintendent of the Sand Springs, Okla., Public Schools and 19 years of central-office experience, Sherry Durkee has been appointed to the district’s top position. Since arriving in the district in 1997, she has held various posts, including director of special education and federal programs for three years. Earlier, Durkee was a school psychologist and special education coordinator in Sand Springs. She began her career in education as a middle-level teacher in Sapulpa, Okla. Durkee became a member of AASA in 2015.



Kevin S. Flanagan
Kevin Flanagan, who has spent his full education career in the 260-student West Yellowstone, Mont., district, has risen through the ranks to become superintendent, just three years after working as a 6th-grade teacher. He joined the West Yellowstone system in 2003 as a substitute teacher for four years. He assumed various athletic coaching roles in track and boys and girls basketball, then became a teacher. Six years later, he was appointed principal of West Yellowstone’s K-6 school, a role he held for three years before being named to the top berth. Flanagan has been a member of AASA since 2016.



Michael A. Johnson
The Alaska Board of Education and Early Development has selected Michael Johnson as the state’s next education commissioner. Johnson hails from the Copper River School District in Glennallen, Alaska, where he was superintendent for seven years, school principal and district curriculum and staff development director for six years. An AASA member since 2009, Johnson holds a Ph.D. in education and intercultural studies from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.



Damien Pattenaude
The Renton, Wash., School District has named Damien Pattenaude its superintendent-elect. He has served the 16,000-student district since 2001, most recently as assistant superintendent for learning and teaching. A native of Renton and graduate of Renton High School, Pattenaude has held the positions of composition and literature teacher, assistant principal, principal and chief academic officer for the district over the past 15 years. An AASA member for three years, he earned his Ed.D. in educational leadership from Washington State University.



APPOINTMENTS
Donald Bavis, from interim superintendent to superintendent, Marion, N.Y.
Kevin E. Carson, from executive director, Delaware Association of School Administrators, to chief of buildings and grounds, Seaford, Del.
Rick Hanes, from superintendent, Piqua, Ohio, to vice president of business and community partnerships, Edison State Community College, Piqua, Ohio
Joanne Harriman, from superintendent, Orono, Maine, to principal, Ella Lewis School, Steuben, Maine
Kyle Kruse, from superintendent, New Haven, Mo., to superintendent, St. Clair, Mo.
Gregory Plutko, from superintendent, Huntington Beach, Calif., to superintendent, Placentia-Yorba Linda Unified School District, Placentia, Calif.
Ken Richardson, from deputy superintendent to superintendent, David Douglas School District, Portland, Ore.
John Sample, from interim superintendent to superintendent, Merrill, Wis.
Kimberly Saunders, from interim superintendent to superintendent, Contoocook Valley Regional School District, Peterborough, N.H.
Nancy Taylor, from interim superintendent to superintendent, Falmouth, Mass.
Thomas Taylor, from superintendent, Middlesex County Public Schools, Saluda, Va., to executive director of school administration, Chesterfield County Public Schools, Chesterfield, Va.
Mary Margaret Zehr, from assistant superintendent for instruction, Watertown, N.Y., to superintendent, Oneida, N.Y.

RETIREMENTS
Louise Berry, superintendent, Brooklyn, Conn.
John W. Corby, superintendent, Whitehall-Coplay School District, Whitehall, Pa.
Debbie Hamm, superintendent, Richland School District Two, Columbia, S.C.
Jim Philp, superintendent, Onsted, Mich.
Barbara Pinsak, superintendent, Teaneck, N.J.

DEATHS
Cora Sue Acor, 71, retired superintendent, Herman School District 22, Mayville, Wis., Sept. 7
Michael Sheridan, 71, retired superintendent, Scranton, Pa., Oct. 28
Roy Woodward, 73, retired superintendent, Harrison County School District, Cynthiana, Ky., Sept. 30


News about AASA members’ promotions, retirements, honors and deaths should be addressed to: Editor, School Administrator, 1615 Duke St., Alexandria, VA 22314. Fax: 703-841-1543. E-mail: magazine@aasa.org