By NATHAN TORABI
Editor
On March 9, 2022, the Visalia Unified School District hosted a press conference for the new superintendent – elected by unanimous vote – Kirk Shrum. The Shrum family has been active in the education field for several generations; therefore, Mr. Shrum states he has grown up in the environment and has learned a significant amount from his family. Some of Mr. Shrum’s qualifications for this position include:
- Twenty-five years of experience in education and administrative leadership roles.
- Principal for Fulton County, Georgia, from 2011-2013.
- Served as an area executive director for Fulton County, Georgia, from 2013-2019.
- Most recently presided as the chief school leadership officer at Henry County, Georgia, since 2019.
- Master of Arts degree in Instructional Leadership from Tennessee Technological University Cookeville, Tennessee.
- Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in Chattanooga, Tennessee.
During the press conference, several media and student reporters were present to ask questions of Mr. Shrum, picking his brain to see his goals and opinions on various topics. He showed an affinity for implementing new programs to provide equal opportunity for all students. Shrum acknowledged that some schools were not as reputable as others but wanted to bridge this gap.
When asked why he chose the position of Superintendent of VUSD over other job opportunities, he mentioned he reached out to the current county superintendent – Tim A. Hire – about the position and believed it was the best fit for him in accordance with his past, present, and future goals.
The next question Mr. Shrum faced was how he planned to combat the decreased activity of clubs in recent years that resulted from the pandemic. In his response, he stated he wanted to speak with and shadow students involved in clubs and understand what attracted them to the environment of clubs, then communicate those reasons to those who are not engaged to encourage them to participate. This answer led to the next question asked: How can we help the students of VUSD to feel more represented and comfortable in the community and specifically in schools? Once again, his response included that he wanted to promote clubs and athletics and have administrators and staff that represent the diversity in today’s world. That way, every student can see themselves as a part of a pathway to success.
Mr. Shrum also elaborated on how he implemented a wide variety of programs – an early literacy program and College Fair, to name a couple – for students in his county to help students continue to improve during COVID-19.
Overall, Mr. Shrum was composed and well-spoken throughout the conference and provided great goals and agendas to implement next year. The next step for Mr. Shrum is to put these ideas into action when he assumes full responsibility for leading VUSD on July 1, 2022.
The one piece of advice I would give to Mr. Shrum and the VUSD Board is to get to know the students more:
- Visit campuses.
- Have meetings with students.
- Talk to all the different cliques on campuses.
- Find out what they want and what motivates them to strive for success.
Only then will the student body feel heard and progress even further.