The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

The Sisters School Board has selected Kay Grady to serve out the last year of Glen Lasken's term on the board. Lasken concluded his 13th year on the board on June 30.

A Sisters resident since 2007, Kay said being a teacher was her destiny.

"My first teaching experience was holding summer school in my Mom's living room basically making an IEP (individual instruction program) for every neighbor kid, and teaching them whatever it was they needed to learn. My grandmothers on both sides were teachers, and I belonged to the Future Teachers of America in high school."

After a career in the field, Grady joined the Sisters High School ASPIRE program as a volunteer in 2009, and has seen her first mentoring group complete their freshman year of college.

"My first impressions on my first trip to Sisters High, a young man opened the door for me; another student asked me if they could help me find where I was going. That culture is awesome," said Grady, "You should not have to be a parent or the relative of a school-age child to know what is going on in that building."

Using her degree from Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Grady has taught every grade K-8 except first grade. She served in many educational capacities during her career including classroom teacher, a middle school counselor, and a curriculum coordinator.

Kay taught in Chicago for 10 years before marrying David Grady and moving to the Silicon Valley where she taught for 11 years. When her husband took a job with Next Computers in Pennsylvania, Kay did her only stint in a private school. From that experience she learned to appreciate a program with a strong, child-oriented, experiential approach. Their classroom was often at a museum or a field trip to the likes of Williamsburg or some other place of historical significance.

David's next move was to join Paul Allen's Starwave start-up in Seattle, where they stayed for 12 years before moving to Sisters.

Grady grew up in Howell, Michigan, between Lansing and Detroit. At that time the town was about the size of Sisters. She feels she has an appreciation for the special cultural nuances of a small town. Her father was a pharmacist and both her parents were very involved in the community. Grady and her three younger siblings grew up with volunteering as a way of life.

When Kay was living in the Seattle area she used to meet her friends from Chicago and the Bay Area in a central location, Sisters. She and her husband loved the arts, the music and the weather. She was also impressed with reputation of Sisters schools, and she admired the stories of the local citizen's pride in and commitment to the schools.

"I was in my last job long enough that I wasn't growing; the board position will force me to grow," said Grady. "This (the board position) gives me the opportunity to not be in one classroom, but to have influence and be supportive K-12. You can't do that as a classroom teacher."

Grady simply wants to serve the district well.

"I have no secret agenda; I don't have any bones to pick. I just want to do great by the kids," said Grady. "Yeah, budget is a problem, but you can't just fold your hands a say, 'Gee I'm sorry.'

"I'm part of a team and I'm a good listener. I would like to say that every decision that I make will emanate from a combination of what is best for kids and common sense."