Lakota's new superintendent focuses on improving district culture and test scores

Ashley Whitely is Lakota Local Schools' new superintendent, but she's not a new face to the Lakota community.

Whitely used to teach English at Lakota East High School and has lived in the district for several years. Her daughter is in the district and will be in seventh grade this fall.

"I was not looking to just be a superintendent anywhere. This is the place that I truly wanted to be," Whitely told The Enquirer.

July 1 marked her first day as superintendent of one of the largest districts in Ohio. Lakota serves nearly 17,000 students in Butler County across 22 schools. Whitely's contract, which the board approved in May, is valid through the 2028-29 school year and guarantees her an annual base salary of $199,000. After her first year as superintendent, Whitely will be eligible for a $38,500 performance annuity based on her annual evaluation. She's also entitled to a yearly $6,000 car allowance in lieu of any mileage reimbursement, according to her contract.

Elizabeth Lolli, who has led the district in the interim after former superintendent Matt Miller left in early 2023, is working with Whitely during this transitionary period. Lolli plans to retire in August.

Whitely sat down with The Enquirer to talk about her return to Lakota and her vision for what's next for the district.

What led you to this role as Lakota's new superintendent?

Whitely started her career as an English teacher in southwestern Kentucky. After a few years teaching there she moved with her husband to Ohio and got a job at Lakota East High School.

She taught at Lakota East for five years and also served as department chair. She loved teaching Advanced Placement English and working in a disciplinary role at the main building, she said. Once Whitely realized she was ready for a full-time administrative role, she took a job at Wyoming City Schools.

Whitely worked as an assistant principal at Wyoming High School, then became principal and eventually assistant superintendent of the district. Thirteen years later, she said she's "coming full circle" by returning to Lakota.

"The beauty of a small district is that you really get to see all of the inner facets and all of the inner workings," she said. "Which really, I think, paved the way to be prepared for a superintendent role because you've really, just, kind of seen it all and been involved in it all."

What's been your perception of the district since the culture wars launched Lakota into a national spotlight?

School board drama has landed Lakota in national headlines over the last three years. Former board member Darbi Boddy often spurred debates with fellow board members about COVID-19 vaccines, critical race theory and other controversial topics. The spats between board members eventually escalated to Boddy's court-ordered absence from board meetings and her subsequent removal.

Accusations and rumors against former superintendent Miller also put Lakota in the spotlight for many months in 2022 and 2023, when he resigned.

Whitely has been around for it all, as a community member.

"I live here. And so, it's your home, right?" she said. "When you see the journey or the path that we were on, you just, you wanted something different, right? You wanted something that was more positive, you wanted something that was more a reflection of the community and the excellence that you know and have experienced as a teacher here."

But controversies in the education world weren't unique to Lakota over the last several years, Whitely said. As an educator at Wyoming during that time, she said, she offered support as she could and waited for things to blow over.

"Every district has its own struggles at any given moment," she said. "I think sometimes you would say, 'That could be us.'"

How do you plan to support teachers' mental health?

"I think mental health in any organization − whether you're a school, a business, a corporation − you know, people need to feel safe. They need to feel healthy and they need to feel supported," Whitely said.

That includes at the building and central office levels, she said.

"I think it's really making sure that you are listening to your stakeholders and their challenges and what they're going through. And then, as a team, really developing appropriate supports and making sure there are direct conduits that people know how to utilize when they need that support," she said.

Whitely said she recognizes that mental health issues became exacerbated with the COVID-19 pandemic, for staff and students. She said she will work with the district's counseling team to make sure everyone gets the mental health support they need.

How are you ensuring an open line of communication with your stakeholders?

The district is planning to host listening and learning sessions with stakeholders during the fall semester, Whitely said.

The first session was for Lakota's executive team. Subsequent sessions will be held with local business partners, students, parents, teachers and other staff.

"It's about me listening," she said. "What are our strengths? What are our growth areas? And what do you need from me as a superintendent?"

Whitely said she has an open-door policy and anyone is welcome to come by her office with or without an appointment. If she's not there, you can likely find her in a classroom.

"I think it's important to see learning first hand," Whitely said. "When you talk about teaching and learning and really see it in a classroom, I think you can see where students and teachers are really thriving, or maybe where there is a gap that we need to fill. So my goal is to be in classrooms frequently. Not as anything evaluative or anything like that, but just to really, boots on the ground, to see what teaching and learning looks like on a day to day basis so that we can support our students and support our staff."

What do you think are Lakota's strengths?

Whitely sees Lakota's supportive community as its strength.

"Support is about being able to voice your opinion and to be heard. It doesn't mean we always agree," Whitely said. "I think we have a very supportive community. I think we have a very engaged community. And I think they value education. So any time you have that, that's a win."

She also sees staff, students and administrators who want to drive a standard of excellence.

"I think a growth mindset is really important in a district. And I think we are ripe for that and ready for that," she said.

What are Lakota's weaknesses?

"As far as our growth areas, I would probably boil it down to culture. And I think that is because of where we've been as a district, and maybe the narrative around us that has happened," she said. "I think it's really just a time to reenergize and refocus a culture and really make sure that we have a clear vision of who we want to be."

She also said she's focused on improving the district's report card scores in the achievement and growth categories.

Are you worried about Lakota's budget now that pandemic relief dollars are running out?

Lakota received nearly $19 million in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief during the COVID-19 pandemic. That money is also referred to as ESSER.

More: Southwest Ohio schools got $745 million in pandemic relief funds. Did they spend it all?

But Lakota has already spent all of those funds, which run out in September, and said she's not worried about sustaining any programs without more relief dollars coming in. There are some school fees that are returning this year, but no programs have been cut.

"From my understanding of how we used those ESSER funds, we were actually really smart," Whitely said. "Meaning that we invested those ESSER funds in things that were still sustainable after (the funds) went away."

Why did you want to come home to Lakota?

Whitely said she has a seven-minute drive to her office now. Lakota is her home, and she waited through a two-year process to land this job.

"When you know a place has been a destination district, that they are a great district regardless of the narrative and regardless of the distractions that were happening. To be able to come home and lead a district and really know and believe that you have the skill set to do that and be what they need, and have a great team around you to help in that, that's exciting," she said.

"There's a lot of really wonderful opportunities here," she said. "I think things happen for a reason. I believe in fit, I believe in timing. And sometimes you just have to wait until all of that becomes right."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: New Lakota superintendent answers Enquirer questions