Thurston joins Polson School administration
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POLSON — “Communication is key to me,” Brandon Thurston said, adding that he has an open door policy.
Since Thurston will be the Assistant Principal at Polson High School, these are important facts for students, staff and parents to remember.
Thurston, his wife Sahara and their two children Bryce, 2, and Chloe, 1, moved to Polson from Granby, Colo., about two weeks ago after searching for a place to live on the Internet.
Thurston was the Assistant Principal and Athletic Director of Middle Park High School with population of between 350 and 400 students.
After receiving his B.S. from Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., Thurston taught middle school and high school science before he got his master’s in Educational Leadership from Mesa State College, Grand Junction, Colo.
Thurston became an administrator, he explained, because it gave him an opportunity to reach more kids, “to reach beyond my classroom” and help a greater population.
When questioned about his take on alternative education, Thurston said not every kid will thrive in a traditional setting. Being able to provide an on-site alternative, like the Montana Digital Academy, an online option for high school students in Montana, is an opportunity for kids.
Alternative ways for kids to access education decreases drop out rates, Thurston noted, and makes transition to other programs easier and provides more advantages for students. For instance, if due to funding issues, the school can only offer Spanish and a student wants to study German, with MDA it’s doable.
Thurston’s main duties will be handling the majority of the discipline at PHS and monitoring and evaluating staff and curriculum. He looks forward to getting out and supervising sporting events and working with students and parents.
Besides getting to know the students, staff and community members, his goals are to work with Rob (Hankins, the PHS Principal) and see what we can do to improve education here in Polson. “
We need to celebrate the good stuff and work on the other stuff,” he explained.
