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For the second time in less than a year, South Central Kansas Special Education Cooperative board members are looking for a new director.
Ryan Cunningham, who has held the position since March 2011, has submitted his resignation and will leave at the end of June. He is not going far, nor to unfamiliar territory. He will return to his hometown of Medicine Lodge to take a position as elementary school principal.
Cunningham was hired by the special education cooperative in 2004 as a resource teacher at the Iuka Day School. In 2009 he moved to the administrative office as an assistant director.
Ryan and wife Karen Cunningham grew up in the Medicine Lodge area, both in large families, many of whom still live there. They have parents and grandparents in the area and have always considered that if the elementary principal job became available, they were interested.
He is eager to get back into a school setting, working with kids, and looking forward to helping on the family farm during the summers. Their six children, infant through 13 years, will be close to their cousins and grandparents.
The director position has been advertised and will remain open until filled, Cunningham said. He hopes a new person can be hired quickly, “to give people an understanding of the direction we’re heading,” and to give him an opportunity to work with the new person.
The cooperative employs about 120 teachers and 300-some paraprofessionals who serve 15 school districts in eight counties.
“It’s a big challenge for someone new,” Cunningham noted.
One of his goals, during his short term at the helm, has been to develop trust and communication within the co-op.
“I think we’ve accomplished that,” he said.
He acknowledged there will be a bit of a learning curve for him as he moves to a new position, but he believes he will be well prepared.
“I have the benefit of working closely with principals in the last four years,” he said. “The emphasis on helping struggling students will fit well in the role of elementary principal.”
In addition to a new director, the board is also looking for a school psychologist and speech pathologist — both considered as “hard to fill.” The board has discussed the possibility of offering financial incentives for the pathologist and psychologist positions, but no decisions have been reached. Student interns from Fort Hays State University have helped ease the load, and the goal is that co-op leaders can “sell them on the communities and the schools. Right now, that’s a direction we’ve tried to focus on,” Cunningham said.
In addition, within the next three to five years, he expects a significant number of teachers will retire.
“We have an excellent staff, an experienced staff,” he said. “I’ve really enjoyed working here and with the people. This (the job change) is an opportunity to have more time with family.”
For the second time in less than a year, South Central Kansas Special Education Cooperative board members are looking for a new director.
Ryan Cunningham, who has held the position since March 2011, has submitted his resignation and will leave at the end of June. He is not going far, nor to unfamiliar territory. He will return to his hometown of Medicine Lodge to take a position as elementary school principal.
Cunningham was hired by the special education cooperative in 2004 as a resource teacher at the Iuka Day School. In 2009 he moved to the administrative office as an assistant director.
Ryan and wife Karen Cunningham grew up in the Medicine Lodge area, both in large families, many of whom still live there. They have parents and grandparents in the area and have always considered that if the elementary principal job became available, they were interested.
He is eager to get back into a school setting, working with kids, and looking forward to helping on the family farm during the summers. Their six children, infant through 13 years, will be close to their cousins and grandparents.
The director position has been advertised and will remain open until filled, Cunningham said. He hopes a new person can be hired quickly, “to give people an understanding of the direction we’re heading,” and to give him an opportunity to work with the new person.
The cooperative employs about 120 teachers and 300-some paraprofessionals who serve 15 school districts in eight counties.
“It’s a big challenge for someone new,” Cunningham noted.
One of his goals, during his short term at the helm, has been to develop trust and communication within the co-op.
“I think we’ve accomplished that,” he said.
He acknowledged there will be a bit of a learning curve for him as he moves to a new position, but he believes he will be well prepared.
“I have the benefit of working closely with principals in the last four years,” he said. “The emphasis on helping struggling students will fit well in the role of elementary principal.”
In addition to a new director, the board is also looking for a school psychologist and speech pathologist — both considered as “hard to fill.” The board has discussed the possibility of offering financial incentives for the pathologist and psychologist positions, but no decisions have been reached. Student interns from Fort Hays State University have helped ease the load, and the goal is that co-op leaders can “sell them on the communities and the schools. Right now, that’s a direction we’ve tried to focus on,” Cunningham said.
In addition, within the next three to five years, he expects a significant number of teachers will retire.
“We have an excellent staff, an experienced staff,” he said. “I’ve really enjoyed working here and with the people. This (the job change) is an opportunity to have more time with family.”
