School election: Meet candidate Shawn Watts

The Whitefish School District is going through a lot of changes and Shawn Watts would like to retain his seat on the school board to help facilitate those changes.

Watts is seeking re-election for a second term on the board after first being elected in 2011.

“We’re going through a lot of foundational and transformative change and that kind of change takes a lot of time,” he said. “I’m excited to be a part of the whole process and see some things through.”

Watts points to class schedule changes and a new building at the high school, along with implementation of the Common Core standards and professional development as some of the changes happening in the district. He notes that change can be difficult, but it is often part of a larger goal.

“Everyone struggles with change,” he said. “It’s important to have continuous improvement and always look at ways to get better. Our goal is excellence in teaching and educational outcome for our students.”

Watts has lived in Whitefish for 17 years and is employed with Plum Creek working as a senior program manager for the company’s timber department. Married with three children, his oldest has graduated, but he still has two children attending the high school.

Watts grew up in Minnesota and Nebraska. He has a bachelor’s in religious studies from Georgetown University and a master’s in religious studies from the University of Chicago.

Watts serves on the board for Shepherd’s Hand Free Clinic and originally ran for school board as a way to expand his community service.

He said he continues to be a part of the school board because it’s a group that works together well and members are engaged in the process.

“We have different perspectives and opinion, but we can discourse thoughtfully and civilly,” he said. “It’s a working board that is very effective.”

One of the challenges facing the district is enrollment and along with it the budget, notes Watts. Whitefish has seen dropping or stagnant enrollment in the past several years and because the district’s funding is largely based on student counts that has led to tight budgets.

“We need to address that by doing good work and telling our story,” he said. “We need to rely on our good outcomes to attract families to the district, which drives up enrollment and increases the budget.”

Expansion of the curriculum along with the planned $2.5 million performing arts and technology wing in the new high school, Watts said, is one of the ways the district is looking to improve and draw students to the school. The arts and technology wing is being constructed through donations with about $1 million already being raised.

“Over the last two months, I’ve personally put a tremendous amount of time into the efforts to create the performing arts and technology program,” he said. “The support that we’ve already gotten from the community makes me personally proud.”

On dealing with a tight budget, Watts said the solution is about finding the right balance along with making sure decisions focus on education as a priority.

“We have to figure out how to spend to have the best outcome,” he said. “We have to look at opportunities to make the dollars go further. Some decisions are about the long-term sustainability and making sure we do what sustains us in the future.”