Dear ACGC Families and Communities:
Happy 2022! I am proud to have joined the outstanding ACGC Public School as your interim superintendent. I am a retired superintendent still living in the area. I have 26 years of administrative experience in education with a total of 37 years in education as a teacher, principal, and superintendent.
This district has a long tradition of excellence in providing students with an exceptional education and programs that best meet the needs and aspirations of their children. As I am learning more about the district, I continue to be so impressed with the extensive menu of educational opportunities for children and our students.
I continue to be amazed by what ACGC Public School provides for children and students: career and technical education courses; dedicated and student-centered staff; high academic expectations; individualized attention to student academic needs; elementary STEAM program; PBIS and SEL focuses at all grade levels; college credit offered through concurrent enrollment classes; robust extra and co-curricular activities. All of this translates to a rigorous instructional program that prepares students for college, careers and being productive citizens.
I am very proud to serve the communities and families of the ACGC Public School, and I look forward to helping the district through the end of the current school year and superintendent search process. I have been very impressed with the number of people providing feedback through the Superintendent Search Survey. A total of 123 people completed the survey with the majority of the respondents being parents (52.85%) and staff members (37.40%). The top six desirable areas of expertise that the new superintendent must possess as identified in the survey were: 1) Collaborative Leadership; 2) Budget and Finance; 3) Curriculum Development/Evaluation; 4) School reform (i.e., strategic Planning, etc.); 5) Public Relations; and 6) Personnel Management. The top six specialized skills the new superintendent must possess were identified in the survey as follows: 1) Acts with honesty and in an ethical manner in dealings with the School board, staff, and community; 2) Is a “people person” with proven abilities in human relations and communications; 3) Is visible and accessible to the School board, staff, students, parents, and community; 4) Develops and directs an effective leadership team; 5) Delegates authority while maintaining accountability; 6) Effectively mediates and accommodates different perspectives; values teamwork. The personal characteristics survey takers identified were: honest and ethical, effective communicator, personable, problem solver, consistent, and transparent. As a part of the survey respondents were given the opportunity to answer open-ended questions in the survey and on average, 75 of the 123 respondents provided additional commentary. ACGC is a very appealing district and I am hopeful with help from the Minnesota School Boards Association that we will have a number of excellent candidates. This will be an exciting process to be a part of.
Even though my time will be limited here, I look forward to building on the district’s strong foundation and many accomplishments. Working together, you will have many more accolades in the future. I am fully committed to creating collaborative partnerships with our students, staff, families and our communities, leading ACGC Public School as we “work in partnership with our community to cultivate innovative learning while developing values necessary to soar in a diverse society.”
Sincerely,
Paul J. Carlson
Interim Superintendent of Schools