Henriksen named superintendent for Mt. Pleasant

BY KARYN SPORY

Mt. Pleasant News

John Henriksen is elated.

Last night, the former Mt. Pleasant High School Principal received a phone call offering him the superintendent position at his former district. And he didn?t hesitate to say yes.

?I was nervous,? Henriksen said of receiving the phone call last night. ?I knew the board was meeting yesterday evening, but I thought they would inform everyone today (Friday). When the call came in I was finishing a meeting, so I had to call John (Roederer) back.?

Roederer, the interim superintendent, said the board met first with representatives of the various stakeholder groups before going into final deliberations.

Roederer said each group representative discussed each candidate?s strengths and weaknesses and then identified who would be their top two candidates. When pressed whom they would like to see at the helm in Mt. Pleasant, Roederer said each group stated Henricksen would be their top selection.

?I think the strengths are of course John?s experience, his ability to work with people because that was one of the themes ? community building ? and they felt John had the skills to provide that community building, which is so important,? he related.

Roederer added Henricksen?s experience with school finance and being the only candidate to work in a district the size of Mt. Pleasant, made him the successful candidate.

?We think he (Henriksen) will be a great fit for the district,? said School Board President David McCoid. ?With his prior experience here, 10 years between associate principal and principal (at the high school), he is well known to the community and he loves the community.?

McCoid noted that although Henriksen has been superintendent at Central Lee for the past 10 years, he has still kept his ties to Mt. Pleasant in tact by attending church here and volunteering at Old Threshers.

After meeting with the stakeholder groups, the board deliberated for another 45 minutes before settling on Henriksen.

McCoid said the board felt like they had two candidates that they would have been very happy with as superintendent, but they felt with Henriksen?s ties to the community, he could ?hit the ground running?, which will be needed as the board gears up to being searching for a director of curriculum and instruction.

And Henriksen said he?s ready for the challenge. ?We?re so excited to get reacquainted with the community of Mt. Pleasant, a community that we love. It?s a little overwhelming right now, but it?s just a lot of excitement,? he said.

Henriksen said he would be sad to leave Central Lee, as it is a wonderful school district, but he and his family are excited for their new adventures in Mt. Pleasant.

?We are elated,? he added. ?This feels good.?

?It feels sweet,? Roederer said of finally selecting a full-time superintendent. ?I am so proud of the stakeholder groups. There were great people on (the committees) and they had spirited discussions. The community of Mt. Pleasant really needs to be proud of what they have been able to do. I can?t say enough about that.?

The board has directed Ed Chabal, director of finance, to draw up Henriksen?s contract, which will be presented to the board at the February meeting.

*Editor?s note: In previous articles about the superintendent search, Mr. Henriksen?s name was misspelled. The News apologizes for this error.