Hancock Schools Pick Patchin

Contract negotiations between Hancock Public Schools and their choice for the next Superintendent may now begin.

The School Board of Education selected Michigan Tech’s Steve Patchin from a short list of candidates at their regular meeting Monday.

Patchin was one of three candidates from the local area who interviewed for the position earlier this month.

Board President Dale Kero says Patchin brings a lot to the table.  “Like each of the members said, his breadth of experience that he took from teaching in the Dollar Bay Schools to his working with the youth at Michigan Tech both through the Summer Youth Programs and Mindtrekkers right now, he’s got the educational degrees all the way up to through a PhD, so we were really pleased and the public feedback—we had a public committee that was in favor of him and then our feedback from the public was all in favor of him also,” Kero said.

Patchin also requested to meet with the school faculty prior to the board meeting.  “Just about 30 seconds ago,” said Kero, “there was 23 faculty members that had an anonymous vote and the president of the union just told me there was 23 ‘yeses’.”

Patchin is replacing outgoing Superintendent Kipp Beaudoin who was attending his final school board meeting.  Beaudoin said his successor has a lot to work with.  “Oh boy, I think he’s got a great bunch of kids to work with and I don’t think he ever could go wrong when you start with them,” said Beaudoin.

The Hancock School Board thanked Beaudoin for his four years of service and provided a cake and passed around a card to show their appreciation.

Details of the new superintendent’s contract are expected to be finalized this summer.

In other business, Beaudoin said the state approved the waiver of inclement days that needed to be made up, forgiving two days, so now the district only needs to make up one day of school.  Parents will be notified of any changes to the schedule so that day can be made up.

Beaudoin also shared with the board a plaque by the Education Association to honor the late Cathy Skornia, who passed away this winter.  Skornia taught in the school’s resource room from 1996 to 2007 and implemented the Pure Mentoring program.