Mark Ross, the incoming superintendent of Battle Ground Public Schools, left, talks with current superintendent Mark Hottowe, who is retiring this year. (Ariane Kunze/The Columbian)Photo Gallery
As a kid, Battle Ground Public Schools Superintendent Mark Hottowe was always small for his grade.
It made him a target for teasing, bullying and the kind of harassment he’s made his mission in more than 40 years in education to combat. It wasn’t until high school in Bothell, when a history teacher and coach mentored and supported Hottowe, that he realized he was important — that he could make a difference.
“It’s a common story for most people who go into education,” Hottowe, 63, said. “Someone, somewhere in your youth that impacted you and made you feel like you were worthwhile and you could contribute.”
Hottowe, whose last day with the school district is Friday, has spent the last 41 years as a teacher and administrator in the Pacific Northwest. Mark Ross, currently the district’s assistant superintendent of teaching and learning, will replace him July 1.
Incoming Superintendent Mark Ross’ contract runs from July 1 of this year through June 30, 2020. He will receive a salary of $209,065 plus benefits. Retiring Superintendent Mark Hottowe’s pay and benefits were the same, according to his most recent contract.
Hottowe’s career began teaching Native American students in Neah Bay before moving on to become an assistant principal in the Sumner School District, a principal in the Longview School District, the director of student services and the executive director of supervision and human resources for the Kelso School District, and the superintendent of Ocean Beach School District in Long Beach.
Since his appointment to the Battle Ground district in 2014, Hottowe has made social and emotional learning programs — based on the idea that students who are supported emotionally will succeed academically — a cornerstone of his tenure
Hottowe played a key role in the district receiving a $2.5 million federal Project AWARE grant to support student mental health. The district has created student programs promoting inclusiveness on campus, provided teachers with training on how to respond to mental health challenges and added mental health specialists. Healthy Youth Survey data shows since receiving the grant, student consumption of drugs and alcohol declined in the district, while students’ overall feeling of being supported and like they had adults to turn to in times of stress improved.
That work harkens back to Hottowe’s own experience having a teacher who supported him when he needed it most.
“For me, relationships seem to be at the core of what makes us successful in education,” Hottowe said. “I’ve always believed if you don’t have connecting relationships with kids, it doesn’t matter how good the rest of your bag of tricks is.”
Ross, 58, also has a long career in education, beginning locally in 1982 as a language arts teacher and coach at Camas High School. He also taught in Issaquah and Renton before moving into an administrative role as the assistant principal and dean of students at Marysville-Pilchuck High School in Snohomish County. He returned to the region in 2000, holding administrative roles in Evergreen, Vancouver and Washougal school districts before moving to Battle Ground in 2014.
Ross plans to carry on Hottowe’s commitment to social and emotional programs while tackling another significant challenge: replacing aging school buildings.
The district’s attempt to earn voter support for an $80 million school bond failed last November with 55.43 percent of the vote. Bonds require a 60 percent majority to pass.
The district is likely to run another bond soon as growth in the southern part of the district encroaches on Pleasant Valley Elementary and Middle schools, Glenwood Heights Primary School and Laurin Middle School. Those aging campuses, all more than 40 years old, were built to accommodate hundreds of students fewer than currently attend, according to district data.
“I think that’s a big challenge,” he said. “How are we going to tackle that and also have reasonable expectations for what we ask of our citizens?”
Ross said he hopes to support the district as one cohesive community of schools despite its geographic sprawl. That means working with community partners to provide job training and educational programs for students, as well as providing “equitable facilities” to all students, potentially expanding in the northern part of the district.
“We’re all Battle Ground. We’re all one community,” Ross said. “We’re all looking toward what’s best for kids.”
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