By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
During the last of four candidate interviews for the Hays USD 489 superintendent position, the Board of Education met with William Biermann on Tuesday evening.
Biermann, who currently serves as superintendent at Goodland USD 352, spent the day touring the district before the final interview with the board.
The Leoti native also spoke during a community meet-and-greet about his ties to western Kansas.
“We’re from western Kansas. We grew up in Leoti, been in Goodland now, Holcomb before that, so a lot of my professional experience and even growing up has been in western Kansas,” he said.
He also received his master’s degree from Fort Hays State University.
Biermann said he would bring a familiarity with bond issues to USD 489. Goodland completed a district-wide renovation last year after passing a bond issue.
“We passed a bond election three years ago in Goodland to renovate and update our aging facilities — very similar to some of the issues they are dealing with here in Hays,” Biermann said. “It’s really helped us move our buildings forward and eliminate some of the problems we were dealing with.”
He added he didn’t know where the district would be without the bond.
Similar to the proposed Hays bond issue, Goodland used sales tax to offset the property tax increase that would accompany the bond.
“It’s worked really well for us,” noting the district have been over its revenue projections, allowing the district to be ahead of schedule in bond payments.
While Biermann is interested in the Hays position, he said it was a unique opportunity that did not reflect a desire to leave Goodland, but rather a way to advance professionally while remaining in western Kansas.
“We’re very happy in Goodland. Things have gone well for our family. Professionally, I’m very happy there. I could stay there a long time,” he said, but noted, “Hays is kind of that unique job. … Hays is probably one of the few communities that’s actually a little bit bigger than Goodland, yet still has a moral and rural fiber to it.”
Along with his familiarity with the area, Biermann said he brings visibility to the position.
“I think I’m highly visible. The relationship thing is critical for me,” he said.
Building that relationship, he said, allows him to develop support from staff.
“I think a strength that I’m good at is analyzing things,” he said, noting that trait allows him to look at a situation, receive input and create a plan of action based on the information.
But any changes he might want to make in Hays would only be made after a long look at the district, and he said he would seek input first and not force immediate changes based on his own experiences.
“That’s not me. You know what works in Goodland, works in Goodland and it works in Goodland because that was an issue we needed to resolve,” he said.