Welcome to Kenmare

Feature Stories (Vol. 109 No. 28--7/11/2007)

New superintendent gets started at KHS

By Caroline Downs

Duane Mueller, Kenmare’s new superintendent and elementary principal as of July 2nd, is the first to admit he still has more to learn.

"In education, we’re always learning," he said. "Some things may work for us now. Some things may not work for us for a couple years. We have to show our students as educators and as adults that we are lifelong learners."

In his new role, Mueller will learn to balance the demands and needs of Kenmare Elementary School, as its principal, against the broader perspective of the entire school district, as its superintendent.

And he welcomes the opportunity. "The biggest challenge is going to be the time factor," he said. "I won’t know realistically until the school year gets started. Both roles are very important. As the elementary principal, I don’t want that position to be shortchanged. You need to be there for your staff and parents, for your students."

Mueller, a native of Beulah, credited his career in education to an initial interest in athletics. "I played sports in high school and sports in college," he said. "It was a natural flow, but it was a matter of finding a fit. What did I want to teach in a classroom?"

He started his teaching career in Columbus, ND, after earning a bachelor’s degree from Dickinson State as a physical education major with minors in history and driver’s education. He taught in Kenmare from 1985 to 1995 before moving to Kingman, Arizona.

"I was in the classroom for 18 years," he said. He also coached boys and girls basketball and track during those years.

As a teacher, Mueller wanted students to consider what they could learn beyond the notes and textbooks. "When I was in the classroom, I wanted kids to have a good knowledge of the subject matter, but I also wanted kids to have knowledge of what goes on around them," he said. "Creating a well-rounded person is what I strived to achieve with students, and I still believe in that."

He linked classroom learning to the outside world. "You want students to think on their feet," he said, "to make decisions based on experiences that they’ve had and to give them those experiences through their high school careers."

Eventually in his career, administrative work appealed to Mueller. "As an administrator, you can make an impact on a larger number of kids’ lives and assist teachers to be the best they can be," he said.

He earned a master’s degree in educational leadership from Northern Arizona University in 1998, with additional hours for both his principal’s and superintendent’s certifications, and accepted a position as an assistant high school principal and activities director at Red Rock High School in Sedona, AZ. He later returned to the Kingman district, working first as an elementary assistant principal, then as principal of a school for students in kindergarten through 8th grades, and finally as an assistant principal in a high school expanding from a three-year to a four-year school.

"I wanted experience in creating a high school," Mueller said of his most recent post, with an enrollment of 2,300 students in grades 9 through 12. "We added thirty additional staff members and brought in twenty portable classrooms. It was a true four-year school with a lot of growing pains. The sophomores were new to campus, as were the freshmen. Two of us dealt with discipline on a daily basis. You try to maintain consistency so success can continue."

Mueller enjoyed and learned from his career choices, but he and his wife Elizabeth, a speech-language pathologist with more than 20 years’ experience, along with children David, 16, and Janel, 14, were excited about returning to Kenmare. In fact, Elizabeth was hired as the new speech-language pathologist for the Kenmare district.

"Having spent eleven years here, it was like coming home," Mueller said. "You come back to familiarity. There’s nothing better than people from North Dakota."

He admitted that living closer to relatives and longtime friends held appeal, as did the hunting and fishing opportunities. "The area has a lot to offer," he said. "Not just the job itself, but the things that go with the area."

Most of all, however, he believed the experience he gained in Arizona, leading schools of 700 or 800 students, would carry over to the combined superintendent/principal position in Kenmare. "I thought the challenge would be similar," he said.

Kenmare will be Mueller’s first superintendency, and he appreciates the district’s attributes. "It was a great district when I was here before, and it’s still a great district," he said. "I see a willingness to continue to move forward. Financially, this district is solid. The student count is solid. The community supports this district."

He noted a commitment in recent years to make technology available for students and teachers. "In the 21st century, that is the driving force of education," he said. "We’ll continue down that avenue as much as we can for students and staff. We have already started that discussion."

He is looking forward to working with the veteran staff, including the teachers, business manager, secretaries, custodians and cooks, and the school board. "You can’t have a successful school without the support of everyone who’s in it," he said. "One person can’t make it successful. It takes a whole team to do it."

Mueller realizes those veteran teachers will create a new situation for the district as they retire within the next few years. "It’s going to be hard to replace the quality of those people, their leadership and their knowledge," he said. "I can tell by the quality of the students here and by the test scores. As we look seven to ten years down the road, we want to be recruiting and bringing in quality people."

While the demands on a superintendent may sometimes pull him toward district-wide responsibilities, Mueller truly enjoys his time as a principal for elementary kids. "It’s just fun to see their smiles,...to see them grasp and learn and become better students," he said.

Whether as principal or superintendent, Mueller wants to meet the Kenmare district’s patrons. "I like to talk to people," he said. "It’s always nice to hear people’s thoughts and...ideas. Everybody has something to offer. What we need to do in education is tap into that and make that available [to students]."

While living in Kingman, Mueller assisted with the local Pop Warner football league, as well as basketball through the Boys & Girls Club and the city’s Parks and Recreation division. "It was an opportunity to get involved in the community a little more, and stay connected with kids," he said.

However, he plans to focus primarily on administrative work in Kenmare. "I want to do the best job I can in the position I’m at now," he said. The longtime athlete and coach will still offer his support during all types of students events. "I enjoy activities. I’m going to be at the activities," he said. "We’re in this profession for students, and they deserve as much support as [we] can give them."

The boxes in Mueller’s new offices have mostly been unpacked, and his Harley-Davidson wall clock ticks away the minutes until the new school year begins. In the meantime, he and his family are settling into life in Kenmare.

"I’m happy to be here," he said. "I’m excited and feel honored to be able to have this position."

He paused and smiled before adding, "The learning curve will be high again."