Eighth graders Carter Schrag and Kelley Reggiero laughed and shook their heads as Nickerson High School counselor Steven Matthias tried to get them to buy a Tesla or a Porsche.
Students played a real-life version of The Game of Life, complete with crying babies and school loans, during Wednesday s Reality U event at the Nickerson USD 309 District Office building.
Reality U is a one-day financial literacy event where students in middle and high school learned the realities of adulthood and preparing for an employable future. The student filled out a survey beforehand and then when they arrived, they were given a form giving them in detail their monthly income, their marital status and if they had children.
When Curtis Nightingale was told he was a finalist for the superintendent position at Nickerson-South Hutchinson School District, he was not told he would have to give an impromptu speech.
But when he stood before a small group of teachers and principals from the district at Reno Valley Middle School, no one would have noticed that his talk was unrehearsed. Having been a construction worker, law enforcement officer, musician, teacher, mayor and principal, Nightingale is comfortable in front of crowds.
With degrees in education and leadership, including two master s degrees, Nightingale set a high bar. He explained that as a principal he tries to promote a level of trust and transparency from the beginning.
USD 309 Nickerson-South Hutchinson will interview the first of two candidates for the superintendent position today.
Curtis Nightingale will tour the district with the principal of Nickerson High School, Rick Blosser. There will be an open meet and greet at 3:30 p.m. on April 13 at Reno Valley Middle School. Nightingale will interview with the board beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Nightingale and the other candidate, who will be announced on April 14, were selected to be interviewed based on their fit with desired characteristics that were developed with input from focus groups and an online community survey utilized during the search process. The second candidate will have a meet and greet at 3:30 on April 14 at Reno Valley Middle School.
The Nickerson-South Hutchinson Board of Education will interview two candidates for their open position of school superintendent next week. The interviews will take place on April 13 and 14.
In addition to a private interview with the Board of Education, each finalist will tour the district and facilities and participate in a public Meet & Greet at 3:30 p.m. at Reno Valley Middle School. Patrons and staff will be notified of the finalist’s name and specific schedule for the day on the morning of each interview.
Nickerson will start interviewing for new superintendent early next week
Nickerson-South Hutchinson Schools held their board meeting on Monday evening at the district office. During the meeting, the board discussed plans for the search of the new superintendent, students failing due to COVID-19 issues and upcoming assessments.
All applications for the superintendent were due by April 2 and were screened by the Kansas Association of School Boards. KASB will present their findings to the Nickerson-South Hutchinson School Board on April 7, during a closed board meeting.
Interviews for the superintendent position could begin as early as Thursday and will most likely take place on either Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday next week. The district is not sure how many candidates they will interview.