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Dr. Jim Wagger emphasizes "what's best for students" and outlines finance and instructional plans in interview with Prior Lake‑Savage board
Summary
In a one‑hour interview, superintendent candidate Dr. Jim Wagger told the Prior Lake‑Savage Area Schools Board he puts "what's best for students" first, described strategies to tighten budgets while protecting programs, and detailed steps he used to boost curriculum alignment and testing results in prior districts. The board will deliberate the following evening and post deliberations and finalist materials online.
Dr. Jim Wagger, a superintendent candidate, told the Prior Lake‑Savage Area Schools Board on Friday that his guiding question in difficult decisions is "what's best for students." He described nearly 30 years in education and said he seeks to build on the district's reputation while addressing the challenges the board identified.
Wagger told board members he prioritizes student outcomes when facing unpopular choices and uses data to guide staffing and program decisions. "What's best for students? That's always our number one goal," he said during the interview facilitated by the Minnesota School Boards Association's Barb Dorne.
He described several concrete practices he uses to improve instruction: regular administrative classroom walkthroughs (using a McCrell U‑style protocol), frequent interim assessments (three to four MAP cycles per year), and targeted supports for early‑career teachers via lead teachers. Wagger said those steps helped his prior district move from being above the state average in six of 17 tested areas to 15 of 17 in about three years: "By year three, we got that up to 15 out of the 17 areas at or above the state average," he said.
On finances and capital planning, Wagger recounted a prior bond process that failed initially, followed by extensive community engagement (dozens of meetings with parents, staff, business leaders and other stakeholders) and design revisions that led to a successful ballot result. He said the revised plan consolidated elementary capacity onto a single campus, demonstrated operating savings from a more efficient footprint and used creative facility design — for example, fabric roofing for a multi‑use gym — to reduce costs and increase community buy‑in. He told the board the second vote passed by roughly a 3‑to‑1 margin.
Wagger also described approaches for maintaining programs with constrained budgets: not automatically refilling positions after retirements, expanding career and technical education (FFA, automotive, metals), partnering with local employers for instruction, and hiring an additional school nurse who also teaches a nursing assistant course tied to local long‑term‑care employers so students gain job placements.
Asked about mistakes, Wagger said he regretted using the phrase "weakest link" early in a leadership role, later apologized to affected staff and followed up to rebuild trust. He framed such actions as a corrective leadership practice: apologize, take ownership, and ask how to make amends.
The board asked about how it functions as a governance group; members said study sessions and regular meetings provide substantial discussion and described differing oversight styles among members. Board members cited teachers and students and the district strategic plan as top accomplishments and identified better leveraging individual board members' strengths as an area to work on.
Barb Dorne of the Minnesota School Boards Association ran the interview schedule and reminded the board that interviews are timed and recorded; she said a finalist interview and the recorded deliberations would be posted online after the board completes its closed deliberations. The board said it will conduct deliberations the following evening.
The board did not take a vote at the interview session; deliberations and any final action are scheduled for the board's next meeting.
