New school year, new schedule, new superintendent

Editor's note: A version of this story ran in the Back to School special section earlier this week.

Havre Public Schools starts a new school year today with a four class-day schedule and a new superintendent, who said he is looking forward to the year and new opportunities.

Brian Gum was hired by the district's Board of Trustees earlier this year with nearly complete consensus regarding him being the best candidate for the district after the unexpected death of then-Superintendent Craig Mueller.

Gum said he's been an educator for 25 years, having returned to Montana 14 years ago to join the Stevensville Public School District, where he served as a principal at both the middle and high school levels, as well as activities director, curriculum director and coach at various times.

Before that, he said, he'd been a teacher, coach and principal at various schools in the southwestern and northwestern United States, having received his degree from University of Montana Western.

He said his experience at schools in other states was valuable, but he always wanted to move back to Montana and, after the birth of his third child, Roma, he decided it was time to come home.

Roma is a sophomore this year and Gum and his wife, Erin, have two other children, Jaren, who is serving in the U.S. Army, and Hunter, a freshman at Carroll College majoring in pre-med.

Gum said he was glad to get back to the state when they moved.

"I think I always wanted to get back home to Montana, you know," he said. "I'm originally from Butte but I grew up in Hamilton. And then, just being a Montana guy, I always wanted to get back home so that was kind of always the plan."

Gum said his father was a 40-year science teacher and coach, mostly in Hamilton, with a passion for cross-curriculum activity, so he grew up around educators and when he started exploring subjects in college it seemed like an obvious pick for him.

Gum said he's been in leadership positions for most of his time in education and he was always looking become a superintendent and when he saw a position was open in Havre he started doing some research on the district and the community and it seemed like a great fit for him and his family, with a proud academic and athletic history.

He said that, so far, it's been a smooth transition, though he's sure that the beginning of the school year will bring plenty of excitement.

New board members, new class schedule, new programs

Gum arrives at a somewhat pivotal time for the district as the school board, after seating a number of new school board members and electing its first new chair in some 15 years, voted to transition to a four-day school week, a change that was supported almost universally by school staff and strongly by the community, based on polling.

Under the new schedule, days were extended so there was no loss of education time, and every other Friday the schools will be open for half days to give students extra help should they choose to attend.

Gum said there will certainly be adjustments made throughout the year as educators transition to the new model, but the schools' schedules have been finalized and he thinks the change opens up a lot of interesting opportunities for educators and their students.

"I think it's a great opportunity to do some really cool, cutting-edge stuff," he said.

He said a big focus of this year is going to be making sure that educational intervention is being targeted at the students that need it the most, and these Support Fridays, as they are called, are an incredible opportunity to do just that.

He said Havre High School will also be starting its new advisor program which will provide more in-school mentorship and allow students to explore subjects they want, and that, combined with the Support Fridays, makes him very excited to see what the district can do for their students.

He said educators have been doing training to prepare themselves for the new schedule and the decision to implement this new schedule has created an energized atmosphere among staff and he wants to see the results of that in the coming year for students.

"If we're creating a system where everyone's excited about what they're doing and it works good for our students, that's good for our families, which is good for staff, then we have done the best job possible," he said.

Gum said if he has one thing to tell new and returning students, it's to take advantage of these opportunities to learn outside of normal class time, and really connect with the people at the district, all of whom want them to reach their full potential.

Gum said he's sure parents and families will certainly have questions as this new school year starts and he asked that people be patient with the district's educators, who will be adapting themselves, but he said he's going to make sure people are kept informed.

He said he's always erred toward over-communication, and with this transition he suspects that instinct will serve him well when it comes to interfacing with the community's families.

He also said he's continuing to work with district Facilities and Transportation Director Scott Fillius and Boys & Girls of the Hi-Line President Tim Brurud to make sure students can get to the club on Fridays and working out any kinks in the system so students can access this vital service as easily as they practically can.

Gum said Stevensville was a five-day school, but having worked in many different roles in many different schools in many different places, he's developed an adaptability that makes him confident that he will mesh well with this new schedule, one that more and more schools in the state are considering.

When asked if there were any programs or practices at his previous schools that he was interested in bringing to Havre Public Schools, he said he had a few ideas, but he doesn't want to rush into it.

Pride and support from the community

Gum said this is a new district for him, and he wants some time to really experience the nuances of the district before he considers proposing anything major.

One thing he has already observed is that the level of pride the community has in the district is remarkably high, which is extremely refreshing.

Gum said districts don't always have the kind of moral support that Havre does and the community's support is evident practically everywhere he goes.

"You don't always get to see that in every district," he said.

He said he's been really enjoying Havre so far, and everyone has been extremely kind.

"When we bought our home here, lots of different people within the community, and the district jumped in and helped us move in," he said. " ... We felt very welcome."

As for the district itself, he said, it's been great talking to all the teachers and observing how everyone's personalities mesh together and he's really looking forward to developing relationships with everyone.

He said he maintains an open-door policy and he's eager to hear what people have to say.

As he navigates the new district, Gum said, Assistant Superintendent Brad Moore has been a fantastic resource for him, having an extensive career in school leadership and wealth of knowledge.

Beyond Moore, he said, so much of the district's administrative team is made up of long-term residents of the area and they have been excellent guides to the community as well as the district.

Gum said he's also excited to interact more with the district's school board.

He said they will be receiving some joint training from the Montana School Boards Association soon to get everyone, including the board's many new members, up to speed on policy and procedure.

He said the board has a lot of new members as well as a new chair and he thinks this is a great starting point for himself and his new colleagues.

"I think the board and I are looking at this as a kind of a new beginning," he said.

He said he has plenty of experience presenting to school boards given his experience as a principal, but it's always interesting to change roles.

Gum said he's excited and ready to go for the coming year and he hopes everyone else is too.