UM hires new associate dean for College of Education (2024)

A recent hire at the University of Montana’s College of Education wants to tackle the state’s teacher shortage, bringing with him decades of experience in local schools.

Mike Perry, who’s leaving his post as the superintendent of the Arlee School District, says he hopes he can leverage his new role as associate dean to show people the impact of public education in local communities. He’ll officially join the College of Education in mid-July.

“Teacher shortage, administrator and counselor shortages, you name it, public schools are hurting so bad for employees,” he said in an interview with the Missoulian.

Perry, who holds a master’s and doctorate in education from UM, said he hopes to leverage the connections he’s made in Montana’s education sphere to bolster the appeal of teaching and administration positions through UM’s education college.

“I thought this was my chance to jump in and promote teaching and administration,” he said.

The associate dean position leads UM’s College of Education alongside Dean Dan Lee.

“We’re thrilled to have Dr. Perry at our college," Lee said. "He’s a well respected, highly experienced educator and he knows Montana, every so often you’re lucky to find a rare gem in your backyard, and we did."

The college did a national search to find their new associate dean, but ultimately landed on Perry, he added.

Perry brings with him a wide swath of experience working in public education. He started as Arlee’s superintendent in 2020, where he secured the funding via grants and building bonds to build the district’s new elementary school. In that role, he oversaw staff across a four-building campus and handled budgeting and long-term strategy planning for the school board and community.

Prior to that, he worked as the superintendent for Hot Springs Schools and served in other superintendent and school leadership posts around Montana and eastern Washington.

In 2022, he was recognized as the Montana Superintendent of the Year. He’s also worked as an adjunct professor at different universities for the last 12 years.

“My main goal has been to try and make sure that school is a safe and inviting place for all students,” he said.

Growing up, Perry attended 10 different K-12 schools, which showed him the drastic impact having qualified, helpful teachers can make in day-to-day learning. Strong public education programs are vital, he said, because they open doors to new possibilities for students.

“No matter what (students) want to do, if they’re well prepared, then they’ll have many more opportunities than if they’re not,” he said.

Perry, who’s spent the last 10 years working on tribal lands in Montana and Washington state, also hopes UM can serve as a flagship for getting more Native Americans into teaching and school administration positions.

“If I go to our Lake County superintendent meetings, which are most of the superintendents on the Flathead Reservation, none of us are Native. And we need to change that,” Perry said. “We need to get more Native Americans going into education.”

Perry noted older generations of Indigenous Montanans often don’t have positive public education experiences, and he wants to reform that.

“If you’ve had a horrible experience in public education, why would you encourage anyone in your family to go into that as a profession?” Perry said.

On a larger scale, Perry acknowledged starting pay for teachers in Montana isn’t appealing.

The statewide average teacher salary was $33,568, according to April 2023 data from the National Education Association cited in a Montana Legislature Office of Research and Policy Analysis document.

In Arlee, Perry saw noticeable problems with hiring classified staff— meaning cafeteria staff, custodians and other non-teaching positions. He said it’s hard to get people to fill those roles when they could make roughly the same pay as working in food service, but he hopes people can see the benefits that are unique to a career in education.

“I couldn’t be more excited to work for the University of Montana,” he said. “I have three degrees from there, and every single one of my experiences was fantastic. And so I want to make sure I’m part of that for others who come (to the university).”

Dave Kuntz, director of strategic communications for the university, said Perry understands challenges facing Montana's public schools, especially in rural communities.

"As Montana continues to experience significant teacher shortages, Mike, Dan Lee, and the leaders at the Phyllis J. Washington College of Education are advancing the workforce training needed to keep our public schools strong," Kuntz said.