Up close with Dr. Jarod Larson

By: 
Jill Meier/Journal Editor

School superintendent reflects on year 1 at helm of BVSD 
 
 
 
“Outstanding achievements, a learning curve, overall, great successes.”
That’s how Dr. Jarod Larson summed up his first year in his role as the superintendent of the Brandon Valley School District.
“I joked with someone the other day, who said, ‘Well you survived your first year,’ and of course in true fashion I said, ‘Survived? I thought thrived,’ but I suppose it depends on who you ask.”
When asked to summarize the year, Larson defines it as “a really a positive year.”
“I think we’ve got a lot of really, really positive things going. We’re building on our foundation of excellence that we’re going to do to enhance our district on some of the things we’re bringing forward now,” he said. “But there’s always a latitude for improvement. I’m always reflecting. (As a) reflective practitioner and effective practitioner, I obviously have to make decisions and live with them, regardless if they were the best or not the best…and you do what you can to learn from those and then ultimately improve.”
As Larson navigated his way through getting to know the BVSD, he utilized the 100-day entrance plan, and met with staff and community members as a way to get to know the district.
“I appreciate all those individuals through that process. It certainly gave me a strong foundation and helped identify some things we could tweak and improve on and solidified all the really great things that we already had going on in the district,” he said.
A year of success stories
As Larson reviewed the past year, he noted the many student success stories.
“Whether it be the football team playing for a state title, the track team and our Gatorade Athlete of the Year (Krista Bickley), and the 5-12 band concert – the first ever, first annual, all-district band concert - which was a huge success, and I say first annual because that will now be a tradition, it has to be, it was so wonderful,” he said.
But the success of the district goes beyond the students.
He earmarks the purchase of the Dairy Queen, which will soon be finalized, as an added perk.
“I think that has the potential to be a very positive thing for our district. It was very cost effective, is in close proximity to the central office and high school office, and it didn’t create any angst with residential neighbors, so that was really positive,” Larson said of the land that’s added much-needed student parking.
Another notable change is the move to a full day of school followed by parent-teacher conferences, a tweak from the string of early-release days for conferences. 
“I think that will benefit our students greatly academically and our teachers, and hopefully it accommodates our parents’ schedules in a better fashion,” he said.
And rather than waiting for an opening, the district has taken a more proactive approach to hiring teachers, specifically at the K-8 level. A deeper application pool translates to acquiring the best possible candidates for positions, he said.
“We opened those sooner and look forward to the results that that will have,” Larson said.
Most recently the school board approved a special behavior program, BV Leaps, to meet the needs of the district’s most challenging students behaviorally. 
“And then naturally, we started the process of our district-wide strategic planning process through our districtwide survey, and that process will roll into next year,” he said.
BVHS laptops
Outfitting 1,200 high school students with laptops last fall was no easy task, and Larson takes no credit for how smoothly it went.
“Hats off to Dr. (Gregg) Talcott and his administrative team at the high school and the technology crew. Those folks are the ones that made that happen,” he said.
He believes the laptops have enhanced the students’ educational experience.
“The way of the world is technology, and I think it’s important that we put those tools in their hands and utilize those tools to enhance the programming we offer. I think the important thing is that we’re not dependent on it, but rather it’s an enhancement to the programs we offer.”
The first weather call
A weather call is one of the most public decisions a school superintendent can make, and Larson’s initial call last winter was scrutinized by several district patrons. Eyebrows - and tempers - were raised after a BVSD bus slid into the ditch.
“I guess what I would tell you is that it was no different than the weather calls I made in the previous five years,” Larson said. “There were some individuals who weren’t afraid to express their discontent with the decision, and the funny thing about that is I also received phone calls that said, ‘That was a great call. Thank you so much. We needed to have school. That was the right thing to do. It’s wintertime in South Dakota.’ I try to put all that feedback aside because you get it from both angles, and what I will tell you is that I try to take all the information I have to do the very best we can.”
Larson explained the process.
“You evaluate the event leading up to the event, and you wait until the last possible minute to make a decision, because the closer you are to an event, the more accurate the information is,” he said. “The first time you make those decisions you’re able to see the time it takes custodians to deal with snow issues, the time it takes the city to deal with three inches of snow, per se. I think you get a better feel for how some of those timing things work, which is more information for the next decision.”
Larson said he favors late starts over no school, but that decision, he added, largely hinges on timing.
“I get a lot more apprehensive when I see it deteriorating late afternoon, early afternoon, because getting home becomes more of a challenge. Who would want 4,000 kids trapped in your schools?” 
Challenges looking ahead
In Larson’s view, future challenges the district faces – continued growth, building capacity and keeping the widespread district connected – are positive.
“You can go east of Brandon and see houses and townhomes and growth and development. You can go to the southwest part of our district down by 41st Street where we have property, and you can see 14 or 15 basements, homes going up and a 60-unit apartment complex that’s going in, so those are some of the challenges that we do face and managing that capacity of our buildings in a proactive fashion all the while being fiscally responsible,” he said.
The district’s Intermediate and Middle schools both have a fair amount of space, Larson said, and is not as concerning as capacity at the high school where an addition is planned in the next four to five years. Next summer, renovation of the former high school offices is planned. The football field will also be upgraded from grass to turf following the 2018 track and field season.
Getting involved
Despite keeping watch over the state’s No. 1 school district, Larson feels it’s important to be involved in community endeavors. He quickly accepted the invitation to serve on the Brandon Community Foundation Board of Directors and keeps abreast of comunity issues with his involvement in the Brandon Valley Area Chamber of Commerce’s Issues Management Committee. 
“Between school activities and trying to be present in committees at events, there’s not a whole lot of time for much more,” he said.
More Lynx wear
Larson is a suit-and-tie kind of guy, and Lynx fans often see him on the sidelines of a football game or courtside at basketball games in just that.
“Regardless of how much Lynx wear I do have, I’ll still show up in my suit and tie,” he joked. “But one thing I won’t do is show up to the (Booster Days) parade in Valley Springs on a Saturday night in my suit and tie. I’ll be in some Lynx gear for that one.”
Brandon is their home
This fall Larson’s son, Kroix, will move on to kindergarten.
Going into junior kindergarten, the youngster was so excited for the first day of school that he was up early, dressed and ready to report to class hours before the bus was scheduled to arrive. 
Unfortunately, Kroix had hours to wait, as he was enrolled in the afternoon session.
“He’s excited for full-day, every day kindergarten,” Larson said. “And now when he gets up for the bus, he’ll be able to get on instead of waiting until the afternoon. I don’t know if there’s a Lynx that’s prouder to be a Lynx than that little guy. He’s all in.”
After a year of calling Brandon home, Larson, his wife Amanda, and children, Kroix and Vayah, are fully invested in the their new surroundings.
“Transitions are sometimes challenging, and we left a great place with great people and friends, but we are home,” he said. “My wife and I had a funeral for my grandmother (recently) and spent a couple of days with friends, then transitioned back home right after the Fourth of July. After spending five days away, we got home and pulled in and we went, ‘Oh, it’s so good to be home.’ ”
 

 

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