Bill Schildbach appointed as NPS Superintendent
William “Bill” Schildbach will be the new Superintendent for Nome Public Schools. The NPS Board of Education announced their decision in a press release on April 20.
Schildbach is currently the Principal of Mt. Spurr Elementary School in JBER in the Anchorage School District. He has previous administration experience as the Director of Assessment in Kotzebue as well as Principal of Emmonak School in the Lower Yukon School District, and has his superintendent certificate from the University of Alaska Anchorage.
Current NPS Superintendent Shawn Arnold announced his resignation in February 2018. Arnold will remain in Nome until June 2018 to ensure a smooth transition with the new superintendent.
Prior to the April 20 announcement, the NPS Board of Education met with superintendent candidates on April 18 and 19 in Nome. The three finalists were Schildbach, Patrick Mayer and Jamie Burgess. Finalists met with school staff and students on April 18, as well as with community members in an open community forum that evening.
On Thursday, April 19 the board interviewed candidates in executive session during the morning. That afternoon was spent reviewing interview results as well as comments from staff, students and community members. By Thursday evening, the board took formal action to unanimously support the appointment of Schildbach, who accepted a two-year contract with a starting salary of $120,000, beginning July 1, 2018
According to the district’s press release, Schildbach made the following statement upon his appointment: “I am pleased and excited to be selected as the next Superintendent of the Nome Public Schools. Throughout the interview process it was evident that the community of Nome is united in their desire for positive educational outcomes for all of their students. I look forward to meeting and working with the parents, students, teachers, staff, school board and community members of the Nome district to continue the exceptional work being accomplished here.”