New ESD superintendent settling in.

Jason Jeffrey, West Shore ESD superintendent

New ESD superintendent settling in.

By Rob Alway, Editor-in-Chief.

AMBER TOWNSHIP — Jason Jeffrey has been at the helm of the West Shore Educational Service District since July, taking the place of Randy Howes, who retired. This is Jeffrey’s first job as a superintendent, having previously served as assistant superintendent for general education and career technical education at Traverse Bay Intermediate School District. In the past four months, Jeffrey said he has been getting settled in.

“I have tried really hard to seek to understand how everything works first,” he said. “I think that’s really important. I also think there is always change. We’re always looking at our programs and our service and trying to make sure they are best suited to support our students and the services we offer.”

Jeffrey is originally from Big Rapids, which is also where he began his education as a teacher. He said he grew up visiting the Lake Michigan shoreline in Mason County. He said when the job at the West Shore ESD was posted, it peaked his interest.

“West Shore ESD has some great programs. It’s CTE (career and technical education) at West Shore Community College, and the partnership with the college, is just awesome. Also, we provide special education services for our most vulnerable and most needy kids, along with early childhood education and support to local school districts. It’s really exciting to be in a position to touch all these areas. I love being around people and kids are super exciting because they tend to see the glass as 3/4 of the way full. There’s a certain type of person who heads into education and I love being around teachers.”

Jeffrey added that he has found the people of Mason, Lake, and Oceana counties to be above average in their support of education. “I have really been impressed with the number of people in this community who are not necessarily educators but are connected to education. These are people who show their support to young people through community agencies, serving on an advisory board, or volunteering in classrooms. It’s just really neat to see. This is a great area that obviously values education.