Hayden Valley School District Utilizes Community to Address Funding & Staffing Shortfalls
The Hayden Valley School District (HVSD) is finding unique and community-driven approaches to address funding shortfalls and staffing challenges. An active school board and administration, led by Superintendent Eric Owen, is not only proactively meeting those challenges but also using them to forge deeper community connections.
Eric Owen worked as an United Way Executive Director for eight years before becoming an educator. In that role, he found deep satisfaction collaborating with youth agencies. Thus, his transition to education came naturally when he realized he wanted to do something else to create positive change in communities.
Courtesy photo/Hayden Valley School District
His desire to work in a small, rural school district similar to the one he grew up in landed him in Hayden in May of 2023.
“I can’t imagine going anywhere else,” said Owen.
He has since used his professional background and community driven nature to contribute to the coalition that provides the highest levels of student opportunity despite troubling school-funding forecasts and personnel shortages.
John Camponeschi/for Steamboat Locals
“We are heavily invested in looking for grant funding,” he said. “It’s difficult to plan long term when a grant may run for [a shorter period of time], but it really has allowed us to expand the programming that we are able to offer.”
Hayden shares a grant writer with two other Yampa Valley districts, increasing the level of collaboration and coordination between them. From initiatives to strategic financial planning, the communal goal is to expand resources in a proactive manner to benefit staff and students.
The HVSD also utilizes the Steamboat Springs Education Fund (SSEF) for technology, curriculum and staffing. The half-cent Steamboat Springs sales tax was approved in 1993 and expanded by ballot measure in 2009, making funds available to all Yampa Valley school districts.
“It’s a great way for the entire Yampa Valley community to rally around the school districts in Routt County,” said Owen. “It’s nothing but deep gratitude that the SSEF utilizes those funds and puts it back into the school communities.”
He also noted that Hayden has received more than $330,000 in funding from the SSEF.
The HVSD has, even prior to Owen’s arrival, utilized creative ways to address staffing shortages. One unique approach has been to utilize guest teachers to provide coverage for school staff when they cannot be present in the classroom for professional or personal reasons.
“We utilize those individuals on a daily basis,” said Owen.
Hiring full-time staff was something that the district struggled with over the past year. To address this, Owen worked with the school board and administration to put out a call to the community in an effort to seek individuals who might want to work in a school setting.
“We like to have passionate, enthusiastic people,” said Owen. “If we can help them gain licensure through an alternative program, or if they have a license and we can put it to work, we would love to talk with them.”
He noted that several staff members, both permanent and temporary, resulted from the district’s staffing outreach effort.
That community call was paired with another that focused on finding affordable housing opportunities for both incoming and existing staff. The message, sent out by Owen and the school board, was meant to address a perennial problem that is present for all Yampa Valley districts.
“One of the draws to working in the Hayden School District is truly integrating and being part of the community,” said Owen. “If we don’t have housing for staff members, it’s difficult to have them become engrained and anchored in our community.”
As the result of the community’s response, the district now has a list of available rentals for staff. The call for candidates to fill positions also resulted in several individuals transitioning their professional pathways into the district as well, just as Owen had when he began his career in education.
The district also worked with a cultural-exchange visa program to bring in international applicants as well.
“They have a great deal of background in education and a great deal of enthusiasm for being in Hayden,” said Owen. “We are really excited to have them in front of our students while also learning about their culture and experiences abroad.”
The Hayden community continues to rally around the district, with anonymous donors and organizations providing targeted funding for programs such as CTE and preschool.
Ultimately, the district hopes that community growth will lead to the offering of a wider range of academic opportunities, particularly in regards to enrichment and other curricular opportunities, while still maintaining small class sizes.
“My hope is that, at the state level, that there continues to be an understanding of the specific needs that rural school districts require in regards to funding,” closed Owen.
In November, Steamboat Locals’ writer John Camponeschi will be presenting a four-part series of stories that dive deeper into the ways that the SSSD, and other Yampa Valley schools, are providing the best possible education for students with limited resources.
Read Part 1 – Steamboat Springs School District
This series of stories is proudly presented to you by Jon Wade and The Steamboat Group as a continuation of their commitment to “Keep Steamboat Special” by supporting non-profits and events that promote a positive and ever-improving Steamboat lifestyle! You can also support their efforts simply by making a request on the Steamboat Locals Choice for Music. For every song request made in the month of November, The Steamboat Group will donate $2 to Boys and Girls Club of Northwest Colorado, up to $500 total!
Editor’s Note: John Camponeschi is a middle school teacher in the Hayden Valley School District as well as being a freelance writer and photographer for Steamboat Locals.