Principal hired
Principal hired
By JILL DENNING GACKLE
Third time’s the charm, the Garrison school board found Monday evening.
Jim Upgren, 34, of Coon Rapids, Minn. was hired Monday as the new junior high/high school principal. Upgren, a graduate of Minot State University with a master’s degree from NDSU, taught at Bowbells, Hebron and Lakota and was a junior high/high school principal at Kensal, N.D. He was a social studies and substitute teacher from 2009-2011 in the Minneapolis school system.
The Garrison School board interviewed Upgren July 25 and voted unanimously to hire Upgren Monday at a salary of $54,000 for a 200-day contract.
The board was up against the wall with just three weeks before school starts and voiced concern about making the right choice, not just a quick decision. Darwin Routledge resigned June 30 to join the Bishop Ryan High School in Minot.
The district interviewed three candidates July 13. On a close vote, Ryan Harty of Wilton was offered the position. He declined because he said it wasn’t the right time to relocate his family from Bismarck. The second choice, Aaron Koenig, withdrew his name for similar reasons.
