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MCSD Whiteboard: District narrows superintendent search to three finalists

Moffat County School District

Editor’s note: this story has been edited to correct the date of the meet and greet with the three finalists to Thursday, July 7 at Craig Middle School from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Moffat County School District’s summer search for a new superintendent continues apace, as the district has identified three highly qualified finalists for the position.

Jill Hafey, the current principal at Sunset Elementary, is the lone internal finalist being considered. She is joined by two external candidates: Kevin St. John, a former district superintendent at a school district in Montana; and Sheldon Rosenkrance, the recent superintendent of Estes Park School District.



All three have impressive resumes and sparkling references. The school board is scheduled to interview the finalists July 7 and will make a selection the morning of July 8. A community meet-and-greet with the new superintendent will be held Thursday, July 7 at Craig Middle School from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.

Hafey has taught or been a site leader in Moffat County School District since 1998. She began her career as a teacher at Ridgeview Elementary, where she taught until 2006, at which point she moved into an administrative role serving the elementary schools throughout the district.



From 2008 to 2014, Hafey was the assistant principal at Craig Middle School, as well as serving as the athletic director there. She took over at Sunset as principal in 2014. Since 2018, Hafey has also worked as an educational consultant for Schools Cubed, focusing on reading education systems.

“As a leader, in addition to being able to lead with integrity, it is also my belief that one must lead with compassion,” Hafey wrote in her application for the position. “When leading with compassion, you must know your people, their families, their passions, their strengths and their weaknesses, the things that make them flourish or sink, and you must know how much/how hard to push them and when to back off. This is not just important with my staff, but also with the families I work with, the students that attend Sunset, as well as the community.”

Hafey earned a bachelor’s degree from Mesa State College and a master’s from Walden University in Minneapolis.

St. John has served as superintendent or head administrator in some capacity since 2001, leading districts across Montana, as well as serving as head administrator at Butte Central Catholic High School for five years in the middle of that time. He was most recently superintendent at Cascade Public Schools in Cascade, Montana.

“I believe in a partnership mindset,” St. John wrote in his application. “As such, I am entrusted to bring people together and incorporate their various strengths to meet District goals. Such goals must be developed and adopted collaboratively using district data. A kid-first approach being paramount, and their data being a reflection of our success.”

St. John did his undergraduate studies at Montana State-Billings, and has a master’s from Montana State-Bozeman.

Rosenkrance led Estes Park Schools from 2014 until the end of this school year. He counts among his accomplishments there the successful passage of a $3 million mill levy. Prior to serving in Estes Park, Rosenkrance was a school principal at a series of schools in Washington State and Idaho. He taught school primarily in Idaho. He also frequently coached scholastic sports.

“As an experienced superintendent, I bring a deep knowledge with validated experiences of organizational leadership, student-centered learning, community engagement, asset building, talent management, problem solving, innovative leadership, fiscal management and courageous decision making,” Rosenkrance wrote in his application. “I have served as the superintendent of Estes Park Schools for the past 8 years and understand the issues and opportunities of a rural community, including embracing diversity and staff recruitment and retention.”

Rosenkrance earned his bachelor’s at Idaho State University, and holds a master’s from the same institution, as well as a superintendent certificate from Washington State University.


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