Kaczor Named Granton
School
Superintendent
Dennis Kaczor
By Valerie Brecht
The Granton Area School District will soon see a new face at the head of its
administration, but it will be someone who is no stranger to the area. Dennis
Kaczor has been hired as the new superintendent. Born and raised in Neillsville,
Kaczor comes to the district with a decades-long career in education as a
business ed. teacher, principal and administrator.
“Anytime you start a new position, you’re excited for new challenges,” said
Kaczor. “I’m excited to learn what the district is doing well and enter into
that, and also contribute my experience to help the district grow.”
With Kaczor’s hire,
there will be a shift in roles in the administration. Kaczor will take over for
Scott Woodington, who indicated last year that 2019-20 would be his last school
year as superintendent. Woodington has been serving as the elementary principal
and superintendent; however, Kaczor’s sole role will be superintendent. Current
7-12 grade principal Amanda Kraus will become K-12 principal. The district also
hired Joseph Andrashie as the new bookkeeper. He will served as the point person
for staff members when it comes to human resources concerns or questions about
benefits and payroll. He will also be responsible for ordering all the
educational materials for the district.
“With the three
administrative positions, there will be distinct responsibilities and goals of
each person. We’ll have to jump in and identify roles and responsibilities,”
Kaczor said.
Kaczor has experience
in an administrative role that will aid him in this transition, he said. He
spent the last four years as district administrator for the
Herman-Neosho-Rubicon (HNR) School District, which is about 49 miles northwest
of Milwaukee.
“It was intriguing
because the district was newly-consolidated. I got to learn and grow into the
position. You have to wear many, many hats as a district administrator. It’s a
big job and HNR was a great place to learn. Now, I am looking forward to
returning to a place that has meaning to me,” Kaczor said.
Kaczor’s family lives
near Mosinee, so for the past four years, he’s had a two-hour-plus commute. He’s
been staying in an apartment in the HNR School District during the week. With
the Granton position, Kaczor says he’s looking forward to coming home every
night and being near where he grew up.
He's also looking
forward to moving back to a K-12 setting, because his current district is K-8.
For the first 18 years of his career, Kaczor taught at the secondary level. He
said he enjoys having involvement with high school students and all the things
that go along with that, like athletics and extra-curricular activities.
Size-wise, Granton is
comparable to HNR.
“With all the
districts, the sustainability of the district is always a concern so that’s one
of the things we’ll have to tackle first and make plan for moving forward,” said
Kaczor.
Also, at the forefront
will be dealing with the pandemic and making sure the staff is prepared to teach
regardless of what restrictions are in place in the fall. Other immediate
priorities include continuing to build a positive culture and climate at the
school, and establishing connections with school and Community members, Kaczor
said.
Kaczor has been in
some type of administrative role since 2011. Prior to working at HNR, Kaczor
worked as associate principal for Mosinee High School, principal for
Adams-Friendship Middle School south of Wisconsin Rapids and principal and
athletic director for Hilbert High School southwest of Green Bay. Prior to being
principal, he taught business education and coached in Mosinee and taught
business education and marketing in Prairie du Chien, which is south of La
Crosse.
Two teachers
influenced his decision to enter the education world. His mother, Roni
Kaczor-Smith, taught in the Neillsville School District for 30-plus years. She
taught Title I for early elementary grades and was a third-grade classroom
teacher.
“I saw all the hard
work she put in but also that even years later, after her students had grown,
they would still stay in contact with her and have her over for supper and
things like that. It was very impactful to me to see the significance she had in
others’ lives,” said Kaczor.
The other teacher that
had a big impact on Kaczor was his high school business ed. teacher Marlys
Riedel.
“She showed me that
even high school teachers care about students,” said Kaczor. “I appreciate that
caring nature she shared.”
It was because of
these two individuals that Kaczor decided to enter the teaching profession. He
received a Reserved Officer’s Training Corps scholarship and attended the
University of Tampa, where he received his bachelor’s degree in business
management. He spent 10 years in the Wisconsin Army National Guard. He earned a
master’s degree in business education from UW-Whitewater. Kaczor is in the
process of obtaining his doctorate in educational administration from Marian
University, which he hopes to obtain in the next year.
Kaczor is married to
his wife, Sara, and they have three children. He and his family enjoy outdoor
activities like kayaking and hunting. Kaczor has land in the Neillsville School
District that he uses for deer hunting.
Kaczor beings his new
role July 1.
Clark County Press, Neillsville, WI
May 27, 2020
Transcribed by
Dolores
M. Kenyon, May 28, 2020.
Web page by
James W. Sternitzky PhD,
May 29, 2020.
