Brown to retire after 23 years

Kent Brown, the longtime technology director and math teacher at New Rockford-Sheyenne, has submitted his letter of resignation to the NR-S school board and will retire after 23 years with the district.

"Please accept my resignation from employment at the conclusion of my current teaching contract; specifically at the conclusion of the last day of school on May 26, 2023," wrote Brown.

Brown first student-taught in New Rockford during the spring of 1990 before teaching full-time at the Upham district for the next 10 years.

Then, during the TGU consolidation in the year 2000, an opportunity arose for Brown to return to New Rockford.

"I taught elsewhere for 10 years, then when the opportunity arose in 2000 to come to New Rockford to teach, I was delighted," recalled Brown. "New Rockford was the only place I wanted to teach when the Upham district decided to consolidate into TGU."

Brown said he would likely have taught in Granville or Towner had the teaching job at NR-S not panned out, and he's certainly glad it did.

"I couldn't be happier that things worked out the way they did," expressed Brown. "I love this community and have no intentions of moving any time soon."

NR-S Board President, Mike Jacobson, expressed his gratitude for Brown's years of service to the school district.

"I just want to say congratulations," said Jacobson.

"Reaching retirement's a milestone that I think we all want to achieve in our life, so that's very awesome for you to be able to get there."

"Now, from the District standpoint, this is a real bummer," added Jacobson with a few chuckles from the audience and fellow board members. "I think you're gonna leave some big shoes to fill."

With that, the board unanimously voted to approve Brown's resignation.

Among the accomplishments Brown is most proud of is his work on grant funding to bring the latest technology to students, such as a $129,000 grant to install wireless network infrastructure at NR-S for the first time.

He's also proud to have been selected to attend multiple national conferences, committees and events, which have kept him motivated to bring new ideas and introduce state-of-the-art technology into the classroom.

"I will miss flash card Fridays, National Brownie Day, Pi Day (3/14), calendar moments to document silly things said or done in my classroom, my funny jokes, and using my programmable button to annoy my students," said Brown.

"It has truly been a pleasure. I will most certainly miss my classroom and the day-to-day interactions with the students and faculty."

Though he's technically retiring, students at NR-S may not have seen the last of Brown quite yet.

Brown noted that under current law, a teacher can continue to teach part time while still collecting a full teacher pension. And he could even teach full time while still collecting that pension, but only if he doesn't teach for at least one year after his retirement.

However, there are also a pair of bills actively being considered by the 68th legislative assembly in Bismarck, which would eliminate the not-teaching-for-a-year requirement.

"Continuing to teach is just one thing that I am considering," said Brown. "That said, teaching is the only occupation that I have wanted to do, and I still enjoy teaching, so staying in the classroom is a definite possibility."

After accepting Brown's resignation, the board approved a recommendation to hire a new high school math teacher: Steven Stutlien.

Stutlien recently graduated from Valley City State University with a bachelor's degree for teaching secondary mathematics, and has one year of experience as the sole math educator at the Montpelier Public School.

"After reviewing the key qualifications for this role, I am confident that I am well-prepared to be a valuable contributor to your school system and create a culture of continued mathematic success among your student base," wrote Stutlien in his letter to the NR-S district.

Ben Hannasch, secondary principal at the Montpelier School District, recommended Stutlien to the NR-S district, saying he's been a great asset to their school, and will be for the NR-S district as well.

The NR-S board approved Stutlien's hiring unanimously.

In their last order of business regarding personnel, the board also approved the resignations of elementary teachers John and Kendall Christiansen. John teaches fifth grade and Kendall teaches second.

In their letters of resignation, both said they were moving to a new school/community, and that they greatly appreciated the time they spent in New Rockford and at NR-S.

"The experiences that I was able to have with my co-workers and students I will cherish forever," wrote Jon Christiansen. "Leaving behind the relationships that I was fortunate to develop is what makes this decision so incredibly hard."