School board appoints Adams to open position

At the end of a special meeting of the Havre Public Schools Board of Trustees, the board voted 5-2 to appoint Scott Adams to the position vacated when Brian Williams resigned from the board due to moving from Havre.

The other candidates were retired Havre Public Schools Transportation and Facilities Director Jim Donovan and retired Havre Public Schools teacher Lorraine Larson.

Each candidate was asked questions from each board member during the meeting.

Scott Adams

Scott Adams started his interview with a quote from Mother Theresa, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create ripples.”

Adams attended Havre Public Schools as a child and has children in the system, a fifth grader and third grader.

Many teachers and administrators have shaped his life, he said. 

“These teachers all had one common denominator. They loved teaching and they loved students. I feel that is a strength of this school district,” Adams said.

Coaches also had a major impact on his life, he said, including inspiring him and teaching him about setting goals, he said.

Professional development focusing on students graduating, beginning in elementary, is one of Adams goals while he is on the board, he said.

Adams said more than once that he is concerned about the effects of virtual learning on the district and that he wants to return students to face-to-face learning and bring them back safely, he said. 

Adams works in a leadership role at USAA, a military bank and insurance company. He credits his innovation, leadership and open communication skills to what he has learned from this job.

Jim Donovan

Jim Donovan has a diverse background with the Havre School District.

He has been a school principal as well as the districts director of grounds and transportation.

It is hard to get information and comment from parents about subjects such as curriculum, Donovan said. 

He believes a board member needs to be adaptable and able to make the best decision possible at “a time when it is nearly impossible,” he said.

“You have to listen. There comes a certain point where you listen to everything that is there and you make the best decision for the district, for your employees, for the kids and one that you can honestly say comes that from no bias, but one that you just think at this point is best,” Donovan said.

When working with the assistant principal he hired, Donovan learned how to work with someone that had a different opinion than his own, he said. This will help him on the board, he said.

The students who have been here for kindergarten through grade 12 are the ones who need to be integrated into the community job market, Donovan said.

“The home growns, that’s where it’s at,” he said.

Donovan said he wants to be on the school board because he comes with no agenda, he has previous knowledge of the district and people that he really respects asked him to do it, he said. 

Lorraine Larson

Lorraine Larson said the district has amazing teachers as well as administrators and other staff who coordinate the food deliveries, transportation and special education teachers.

Keeping students in school all week during the COVID-19 pandemic is going to be the district’s greatest future challenge, she said.

“Keeping the community informed is a very important thing,” Larson added.

Using the local radio, newspaper, newsletters and social media, along with home visits if there was time available is how she would accomplish this, she said. 

Larson has had to work with people who had a different perspective, she said. Being able to state strengths and deciding what areas needed to be worked on together were both skills she learned from this.

Larson was on the union negotiations committee and learned that teachers have a particularly good leave policy, she said. She plans to help teachers work in their specialties and would use these benefits to help with hiring and retention, she said. 

Larson is retired and said she feels that her background and extra time would benefit her in a school board position, she said. She also has a vested interest in the school district because she has two grandchildren who attend Havre Public Schools, she said. 

Larson also has experience in special education and feels that would benefit the school district, she said.

The next school board meeting will be held Jan. 12, at 6:30 p.m. at Havre Middle School.