AURORA | Harry Bull will draw from plenty of experience as a teacher and administrator when he takes over as the new Cherry Creek Schools District superintendent later this year.
He kicked off his career as a social studies teacher at Aurora Central High School in the Aurora Public Schools district before moving to Overland High in 1984. That post was the first in a series at Cherry Creek. He was an assistant principal at Smoky Hill High School before taking over as one of the first principals at Grandview High School after it opened in 1998. By the time he moved to roles in district administration as executive director of high schools and assistant superintendent of human resources, he’d logged nearly 30 years working in Aurora.
Bull, 56, will move to the district’s top spot this summer, and he says he hasn’t forgotten his years in the district’s eastern stretches.
“My experience in Cherry Creek in Aurora has clearly indicated to me that we have seen and will continue to see changes in our demographics,” Bull said. “We’re also going to see growth. The old days of Cherry Creek being one way are gone. We are a very, very diverse district. I think people forget that, or don’t know that.”
Bull spoke last week from his current office at the district’s administration building near Cherry Creek High School in Greenwood Village. In January, the Cherry Creek School District Board of Education unanimously voted to name Bull as the sole finalist to replace Superintendent Mary Chesley, who announced her retirement after four years on the job. Bull said the rest of the 2012-13 school year will serve as a training window of sorts for his new job.
“It’s me being able to access her as superintendent through my new lens of superintendent,” Bull said. “Very few people have this opportunity. I have it for six months.”
Before casting the vote for Bull, board members cited his accomplishments during a three-decade career, as well as his deep understanding of coming legislative challenges tied to K-12 education in Colorado.
That includes legislation such as Senate Bill 191, which deals with accountability measures for teachers and principals, as well as the implementation of the Colorado Academic Standards and the district’s STEM 2025 initiative. But Bull also speaks of more basic questions tied to state funding for public education, issues tied to conflicting and complex measures like the Gallagher Amendment and the Tax Payer Bill of Rights, or TABOR.
“Funding comes from our constituents and the state of Colorado,” Bull said. “I think we’re going to have to sit down and look at the underpinnings of how we finance things in this state. Somebody’s going to have to resolve that. That’s going to have impact in the broadest sense and is certainly going to have an impact on K-12 education … Somewhere, we have to have some leadership in asking that question.”
Bull also sees challenges as the state moves to implement SB 191, a law that will tie assessments of teachers and principals more closely to test scores. While Bull said he welcomes accountability in K-12 education, he said the effort won’t be simple.
“What I’m not sure that people understand is that schools are incredibly complex. It is within that complexity that we’re going to encounter challenges with regards to accountability,” Bull said. “It’s not as clean as the business model … I think it’s going to help us, it’s going to move us further down the road, but it’s going to take time to work out the kinks. I’m not sure that it’s going to be the answer that everyone is believing it’s going to be.”
Bull, who has four children ranging in age from 2 years old to 9 years old, said he’s personally tied to that complex and long-term effort. Bull’s contract with the district will be year-to-year, but that hasn’t stopped him from sketching out a long-range vision for his new job.
“My father worked for 50 years at Martin Marietta Materials. So, that’s what I know. I know that you go to work and you stay someplace for a really long time,” Bull said, pointing to educational data from Colorado researcher Robert Marzano. “The literature and work of Marzano really talks about the significance of continuity in terms of leadership in the role of superintendency for the leadership of kids.”
“It’s a strong correlation. My commitment to the board is a six- or seven-year commitment, or
beyond.”
Reach reporter Adam Goldstein at agoldstein@aurorasentinel.com or 720-449-9707