New superintendent a ‘no-nonsense’ person
No one is happier that John Glenewinkel was chosen as East Valley’s new superintendent than his wife, Angel.
“My wife made the decision that she couldn’t live in Ellensburg because of the wind,” said Glenewinkel, 46. “I came home one evening and my wife was in the house crying because she was trying to saddle a horse and the wind just blew the saddle away.”
The Glenewinkels’ road to East Valley began in Texas, where he grew up the son of a border patrolman and immigration officer. He attended Southwest Texas State, where he got a bachelor’s degree in 1989 and a master’s degree in geography in 1992. He had originally trained in geology so he could work in the oil industry, but switched gears when the oil market in Texas declined. He began teaching in Seguin, Texas, in 1987.
After several years of teaching, Glenewinkel said they realized there was a “bigger world out there.” During breaks and in the summer he and his wife traveled the country, searching for a new place to call home. “We looked at the hunting and the fishing,” he said. “At the time Washington had the highest pay rate for teachers and was the most progressive state for education reform.”
He moved to Franklin, Wash., in 1991, where he taught half the day and was vice-principal half the day. From there he moved to Shelton, Wash., where he was the principal of Choice High School, an alternative program. He was superintendent in Republic, Wash., for four years before accepting his current position as superintendent at Ellensburg School District in 2005.
He and his wife have been married since 1985 and don’t have any children. “We have eight dogs,” he said. “I’m fanatical about my bird hunting and Angel raises puppies and won’t get rid of them.”
Glenewinkel wanted to stay in Washington and was familiar with Eastern Washington because of his trips to the area for hunting. He also applied for the superintendent opening at Central Valley. “Spokane just suits our lifestyle,” he said. “Of all the positions I looked at, if I could have just picked, it would have been East Valley.”
Two East Valley school board members will be in Ellensburg today for a site visit. Glenewinkel’s contract must be approved before the hire is final.
Glenewinkel said he’s looking forward to applying what he’s learned over the years at East Valley. “The thing that is always the biggest challenge is communicating the work we do with the public,” he said. “I think East Valley has made some really good starts, from what I can tell. I do use a lot of electronic communication and make myself available.”
That commitment to open communication can be seen in Ellensburg, said Anita Boyum, Ellensburg School District board of directors president. Among the things he has done is start a newsletter for district patrons. “He’s always willing to sit down and have a conversation, and I think the community has found that as well,” she said.
Boyum has been on the Ellensburg board for 18 years. “He’s done a great job,” she said of Glenewinkel. “We had a lot of issues here he needed to deal with and he dealt with them effectively and made some good changes.”
He’s headed up a curriculum alignment and set up evaluation procedures. “There were just things that needed to be done,” Boyum said. “When he was hired, folks said they wanted change. He rose to the occasion.”
East Valley is getting someone who is a leader, she said. “He”s a no-nonsense person. He says it the way it is. He doesn’t try to hide things. If there’s something to be done, he’ll say it needs to be done and the reason why and he’ll do it. He’s been good to work with.”
The East Valley board is expected to finalize its decision by Tuesday. He will replace interim superintendent Debra Howard, who was previously the district’s assistant superintendent of operations. She will return to the district’s administrative staff in a position determined by Gelenewinkel, said district spokeswoman Judi Christianson.
“Angel and I feel this will be a very good fit,” Glenewinkel said. “We hope to be there for a long time.”