Austin Reisig from Cambridge hired as PC Elementary principal

By Becky Uehling

Grant Tribune-Sentinel

After interviewing two candidates on Saturday, Feb. 25, Perkins County Superintendent Phillip Picquet and in-coming Superintendent Mark Jolliffe, offered the position of Perkins County Elementary School principal to Austin Reisig of Cambridge. 

“Austin has a lot of educational experiences that he will brings to the role of principal,” Picquet said. “Additionally, he will bring a lot of energy.”

Originally from Wichita, Kan., Reisig is currently a 7-12 Resource Instructor at Cambridge Public Schools. 

He attended Peru State, where he played baseball and received his undergrad in special education and elementary education. He has his graduate degree in educational leadership from Wayne State. 

“I have always wanted to be a principal and be able to work with people to motivate and encourage all staff and students to be their best,” Reisig said. “Education is an amazing field. We are able to work with children who will one day grow up to be our future leaders and it’s up to us to provide them with the best foundation and understanding of the world we possibly can.”

 Reisig said he is “ecstatic” about being chosen for the Perkins County position, saying it is “a dream come true.”

 “Grant has an amazing tradition of excellence, support, and education, and my family and I are extremely excited to get there this summer and begin the next chapter of our lives,” he said. “We appreciate all of the warm and positive words that have been shared from the community, and we are excited to be a part of the PCS family.”

Reisig and his wife, Liz, have three children: Markell, a sophomore, Kaylynn, a freshman, and Miles, a fifth grader. Liz, who is originally from Alma, but grew up in Cambridge, works for Pinpoint in Cambridge and will continue to do so after the family relocates to Grant, Reisig said. 

According to Perkins County Board President Chris Fryzek, he feels that Reisig will bring a lot of “positive energy” to the entire school district, as well as to the community. 

“I think he is a great fit,” Fryzek said. 

The search continues for the right candidate to fill the open principal position at the Jr/Sr. High, Fryzek said. 

Another Teacher Hired

At its Monday, Feb. 20 meeting, the Perkins County School Board also approved the hiring of teacher Bailee Baack. According to Picquet, because of ongoing staff reassignments, Baack’s full teaching load has not been determined. However, “math instruction is one area we plan to assign her in at this point and time,” Picquet said. More information about Baack will be given in future editions.

Other items

Other items discussed at the Feb. 20 meeting include the following:

• Installation of new curtains on the stage in Pritchett gym by Omaha Stage Equipoment. No firm date had been set before press time, but Picquet said they will be up before graduation. The current curtains have been up since 1974.

• The board approved the 2023-24 and 2024-25 agreement with the PC Education Association. According to Picquet, the agreement is for two-years with base pay increasing by $600 each year. For 2023-2024 base pay will be $36,800 and for 2024-2025 the base pay will be $37,400. The district pays full Blue Cross Blue Shield health and dental insurance as part of the package.

• Picquet gave the board a report on efforts being made to purchase a new route bus for the district. Picquet said the district has applied for grants to assist with the purchase, but at this point have not been fortunate enough to receive one. The district has not purchased a new route bus for over 10 years, Picquet said, and will look to include budgeting for that purchase next year. 

• Picquet reported to the board that he has had some interest from the community for bus drivers, but the district continues to look for backup drivers.

The next Perkins County School Board is Monday, March 20 at 6 p.m. in the library at the Jr./Sr. High School.