Holiday Message from Mr. Meyerle
Launch the media gallery 1 playerWishing everyone the best during this holiday season! Holidays are always a time to think back and to also to look forward. If you have little kids, the holidays are great. Enjoy them as little kids, as they will be 21 before you know it.
When thinking back to my childhood, times were much simpler, and I grew up never having everything I wanted, but did have what I needed. We lost my mom to cancer my fourth year working here. It’s hard to believe it has been 31 years since she passed away. She was like most moms back in the day. She loved Christmas, cooking and baking. She loved doing things for her family and kids in general. I was very fortunate to grow up where I did with the parents I had. Mom was a teacher, then a stay at home mom, and dad was a farmer. My dad is now 94. As he will tell anyone, he has had a great life, and is ready for the next journey. I don’t think I can ever make my dad appreciate how much he and mom helped my brothers and I out. I learned a lot from them about life, expectations and being accountable.
As a 25-year old in 1990, I would not have thought I would spend most of my life in the same school district, but I am glad I did. I have been a company man. After my thirty-five years at the school district it is time to look forward. I have submitted my resignation at the December School Board meeting. It will be effective June of 2027, so it is not effective immediately, but this gives everyone involved ample time for a smooth transition. At that time, it will conclude thirty-seven years for me here, and that is enough. It will be time for something different. I have been in the business long enough and have seen how some districts go through numerous Superintendents and how that causes issues with the climate and culture of a school district. It’s not healthy, and I do not want that to happen here. We will have a smooth transition with Mr. Mezger and Mr. Hinrichs still in the district, and the Board will have a solid succession plan in place. I am very proud of our school system, and we are fortunate to have the dedicated staff that we have. Roles may be different, but they are all important. Our staff is terrific.
When I look back at my time here, there is so much to think about it is hard to even know where to start. So much has changed since I arrived in 1990. I explained to Carly, that by the time I am done, it would be similar to me showing up in 1990 and having a staff member at school since 1953! That sounds like a long time to be in one place. Life changed a lot from 1953-1990.
I think back to when my job was Principal, AD, Transportation Director, Head Football……I mowed the lines in the football field, painted the lines in the football field and watered the football field. Steph wondered what kind of job I had. I didn’t know any better and all jobs needed to be done right. That single job does not exist anymore……..as no one person would do it. However, I learned a lot about ownership and being a major piece of a school system.
I entered education teaching Social Studies and coaching football. I became a school administrator in 1999 and I have been going to Board meetings as an administrator for 26 years. Whether I was a Principal or a Superintendent, I tried to have a lot of ownership in the activities at school. I never really wanted to be a Superintendent. My dad convinced me to do it. It seemed like (and is) a position that was more distant from the kids. The problems at a school become different and bigger. All the years I was a Principal, as finances were being discussed at Board meetings, I was worried about the travel schedule, substitutes, referees, and discipline issues. No doubt, there is a learning curve to being a Superintendent with the budget, Board meetings, reporting, working with NDE and the Feds. In the end, I was thankful for the opportunity, and am glad I made the change as I had a list of projects that I wanted to start attacking.
I will retire believing that I left the school better than when I started here. Thanks to having progressive Board members over the years, we have accomplished a lot. I will miss the relationship with the Board a great deal. Most Superintendents wouldn’t say that. It has been a partnership the past 13 years that was needed and we had a group of people in the right place at the right time. There was a day that we would not have ever imagined so many improvements to the buildings, with technology, having fitness centers, a new gym, and a track. I truly believe without such improvements a small school district would be on their way to being irrelevant. Back in the early 1990’s, I had a community member ask me if the football players could share helmets to save money. Crazy, but true. It does cost money to run a school. However, if we don’t have a school here, everyone will pay more in taxes to send the kids to school somewhere else. We don’t ever want to be in that position of losing the schools in Diller or Odell. Schools represent a cycle of the annual events and a continuity of watching young people grow. Communities that lose their schools are never the same.
I think about how my life has changed so much while working here. I was very fortunate to meet Steph and have the family that we have. Our family has sacrificed a lot of personal time over the years to school events or Board meetings. I give my family a great deal of credit of understanding how time consuming my position has been and the dedication it requires. Many times, family events such as birthdays and anniversaries took a back seat to school activities or Board meetings.
School and sports have been a dominate piece of my family’s life. The nineteen years I was the head football coach are filled with memories of some great wins and some disappointing losses. Losing hurts worse more than winning feels good. I always believed that. The personal relationships that I have built with players and students over the years is something that I feel the most proud of. Former students and players have become life-long friends. With those relationships also comes loss. I struggle with the loss of Kolin, Corey and Jimmy. They were all my kids before I had kids and have a special place with me.
There were always kids that maybe needed some extra attention that few others wanted to give. Shoff taught me how it was important to try and help, even though some didn’t want it or accept it, it was important to try. Whether it was telling the kids good morning, helping a kid pass a class, improve at football, giving them a nickname, or just listening to them and including them, I wanted to make a difference.
Having a front row seat to the 2019 and 2020 volleyball seasons that saw our girls win back-to-back state championships and go 69-2 over a two-year span was a true highlight as the Superintendent and as a dad. The commitment to winning championships is long, and grueling. It just doesn’t happen during the season. There were a lot of 16+ hour days that included school, bb practice, going to club volleyball practice, eating in the car, doing homework in the car and getting home late at night. Hard work builds character and makes people more determined. It was all worth it and it was truly a wonderful run over two years that created memories for a lifetime among dear friends.
As this year concludes year 35 for me, I will still be around for year 36 and 37, but the time has come for us to prepare for me not being here. I will still be at work, but the end is closing in. Those that don’t like me can start loading up on the fireworks. I will set some off myself. Thanks to everyone that has made my family and I feel welcome. It is, and will continue to be, our home.
Go Griffs,
M. Meyerle