Ford settles into CPS position

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Seth Ford always had a passion for education and working with young people. Ford, who graduated from Bertrand in 2005, is the new superintendent at Centennial Public Schools.

He said the draw of education was the opportunity “to help students grow into who they’re going to be.”

Greg Barnes, former superintendent at Seward, was Ford’s superintendent at Bertrand and influenced Ford’s decision to enter education. Ford started out as a social studies teacher at Pawnee City.

“I wanted to impact more than one room,” he said.

That led him into administration. He moved to Cozad Middle School, then served as principal at South Platte High School in Big Springs.

“I’ve loved every place I’ve been,” he said, adding that each location helped him learn something.

In Pawnee City, he learned how to coach and be an athletic director. In Cozad, he found that teaching was fun, including teaching middle school.

“That is the best age group,” he said.

In South Platte, he learned how to be a principal in a welcoming community.

“It was a really good experience,” he said. “It couldn’t have been better.”

Ford said Centennial’s size drew him to Utica.

“It’s about the perfect size of school,” he said. “It has outstanding staff and leaders and community. Its resources are second to none.”

His goal, he said, is to make the district even better.

“We’ll work on the long, difficult process and be rewarded in the end,” he said.

Seeing continual improvement is the most powerful thing, he said. In working to improve, one must learn from their shortcomings.

“You fail, you learn and get better,” he said. “I want an environment where kids feel safe to stumble. I want to demystify failure. The only failure is if you quit growing.”

Ford and his wife Keshia have three children – Owen, 8, who is in second grade; Grant, 6, who is in first grade; and Leah, 5, who is in kindergarten. The three used the summer to meet their classmates through a science camp and Colts Corral.

“They are quick to make friends,” Ford said.

Keshia plans to be a stay-at-home mom this year, Ford said, and is excited for that role.

Ford is one of four siblings. His sister is in Lexington and his brothers are at Elkhorn North and Cozad.

Ford enjoys playing golf with his family, and the boys like playing basketball in the driveway and throwing the football around.

They like to travel to national parks, and Ford likes to run – marathons. He’s run in three, the most recent in 2019.

He and his family attend St. Paul Lutheran Church in Utica.

As part of settling into the Centennial district, Ford decided to run to all of the towns in the district. As of Aug. 11, he had two left – Gresham and Thayer.