HELGELAND SETTLES IN AS NEW TOP ADMINISTRATOR IN MENNO
A winding career has taken Steve Helgeland through various changes, but he’s happy to be where he is today — learning curve and all
Signs hanging on the walls of his office inside Menno Public School indicate that Steve Helgeland is a thinker.
One quotes Greek philosopher Socrates, reading: “The mind is everything; what you think you become.”
Another pays homage to Theodore Roosevelt’s famous “The Man in the Arena” speech, which credits those “whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming … who knows great enthusiasms … who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”
And there are two from Winston Churchill, including this: “Continuous effort, not strength or intelligence, is the key to unlocking our potential.”
Helgeland, who is the new superintendent at Menno, has spent a colorful life unlocking his own potential, even though he may not have realized it in the moment. That includes his self-described “hooligan” years following his 1984 graduation from Mt. Vernon High School, his marriage to Scotland native Wanda (Hakl) at the age of 25, overnight shifts at Hy-Vee, work as a welder during a 20-year stint living in Yankton, and — notably — his decision to return to college as a non-traditional student to pursue what has ended up being a fulfilling and winding career in education.
“I’ve done a lot of stuff,” says Helgeland, who in addition to his role as the new CEO in Menno also serves as the district’s special education (SPED) coordinator and principal at Jamesville and Maxwell colonies. “I love adventures.”
Helgeland’s arrival in Menno followed a year as the elementary principal at White River — a single rung on expansive ladder grounded in philosophy and an appreciation for the past.
Born in Mitchell before attending school in Council Bluffs and then relocating with his family to Wisconsin before moving to Mt. Vernon the middle of his senior year, Helgeland eventually earned a degree in elementary education from Mount Marty in 1999.
“I know it’s corny, but you want to make that difference — you want to help kids,” he told The Courier. “I wanted to make sure that elementary kids had that male role model.”
Helgeland’s first job out of college was at St. Joseph’s Indian School before he enrolled in a professional development program at the University of South Dakota, where he earned his master’s degree in special education. He has also earned both principal’s certificate and a certificate in SPED administration; most of his career in education, he says, has been spent working in special education, including some time in both Hardington, Neb., Dell Rapids and Chester.
Path to Menno
Helgeland said he was enjoying his time at White River, but a desire to return to that which was familiar was a draw, and when the superintendent position opened up in Menno following the resignation of Kory Foss, he applied.
“I understand the culture here and how things operate,” he said, noting his wife’s connection to Scotland and their two decades living in Yankton — and an 8-year-old grandson living in Sioux Falls — was a strong pull. “That was a piece of it.”
And how does Helgeland find Menno Public School?
“I find it fantastic,” he said. “It’s really been great. There are a lot of supportive people here. Great kids. Great staff.
“This is different than being a boss in a business environment,” he continues. “You still get to have an impact on kids; you still get to make a difference. Especially in a small district, I get to be around kids, get to hang out with kids, make relationships.”
Helgeland admits that the learning curve has been “pretty steep — just getting to know the culture and climate of the school and what’s working and what we can improve on,” he says. “The biggest challenge — and the one I’m finding the most intriguing — is figuring out the colony schools and the culture out there. That is my biggest thrill right now. It’s really a lot of fun.”
And it’s not something he’s been around, which is saying something considering how much he had seen in his career.
“It’s unique and I’ve got to figure it out,” he says. “It’s finding that balance of finishing the eighth grade and getting the skills they need to be successful in their environment, and then meeting the content standards at the same time. It’s a pretty delicate balancing act. Plus, it’s a multi-age classroom; that’s something I’ve never dealt with.”
Meanwhile, Helgeland continues to try to establish a routine “so everybody knows where I’m at and what I’m doing — so I know where I’m at and what I’m doing.”
He and his wife are renting a home in Yankton for the time being, where Wanda continues her career as a registered nurse, and Helgeland continues to appreciate getting to know Menno.
“We’re a tight community,” Helgeland says. “We know each other, we know our families and we know our kids. We know where our strengths lie, and we know where we need to backfill some stuff.
“We’ve got a lot of great staff here — some new staff that has interjected some new energy,” he continues. “It’s truly a community school — not like Omaha Public Schools or Sioux Falls. We have the opportunity to be a big part of the community.”
In his spare time, Helgeland enjoys connecting with his grandson, spending time with his dogs, exploring the Revolutionary period — “George Washington is probably one of the most phenomenal human beings to ever walk the earth” — and reading.
He also has a passion for POW-MIA, even though his status as a diabetic never permitted him to serve in the military.
“Respect and honor are big things in my life,” Helgeland says. “The guys that served in Vietnam, especially, didn’t get that, so I think it’s important for my generation to recognize and support that in any way we can.”
That’s Steve Helgeland for you. Thinker. Philosopher in his own right. And, now, the top administrator in Menno.
