By BRENT MARTIN
St. Joseph Post
Four finalists to become the next superintendent of the St. Joseph School District have gone before the Board of Education as well as the news media.
Two of the finalists are officials in the St. Joseph School District. Ashly McGinnis is Assistant Superintendent of Academic and Education Services. Lara Gilpin is the Director of Secondary Education. The other two finalists are Laura Nelson with the School of the Osage School District and Jami Jo Thompson with Norfolk, Nebraska Public Schools.
McGinnis tells reporters she is well prepared to step in and take over the role.
“I have a genuine care for the students, the staff. I’ve pretty much been raised here my whole life; lived most of my life in St. Joseph. I have a genuine care for our community,” McGinnis says. “I know that we have made a lot of progress with Vision Forward, with our long-range plan and I want to see those other action steps come to life.”
The only candidate from outside Missouri is Thompson, who has been superintendent with the Norfolk district for 11 ½ years.
“And I think that experience is important to this role, because I have led three strategic long-range planning initiatives which will be very important to the district moving forward as they have a very ambitious long-range plan that is going to be implemented soon,” Thompson says.
Gilpin says her 32 years with the district qualifies her for the post, especially her work now as Director of Secondary Education.
“In that role, I’ve had a lot more opportunity to be in the community and in partnership and really it lends itself to the bigger picture,” Gilpin says. “Also, working with Dr. Edgar on the superintendent’s cabinet, I’ve been able to work hand-in-hand with Dr. Edgar and the team on our long-range plan, our CSIP (Continuous Strategic Improvement Plan), and all of those components that make up the whole picture.”
An outsider of sorts is Nelson, who has served the past five years as superintendent of the School of the Osage. But Nelson points out, she has strong ties to St. Joseph.
“I bring in a wealth of experience and a love of St. Joseph,” Nelson says. “I have grown up here, off-and-on, for many years. We still have a home here and I’m just very excited about the opportunity to bring my dedication back.”
The St. Joseph Board of Education interviewed each of the finalists, who then took a tour of the district.
Superintendent Gabe Edgar informed the Board of Education he would retire at the end of the school year to pursue opportunities in the private sector. Edgar became superintendent in 2022.
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