Aron Dody begins his new duties as Chase County’s superintendent of schools July 1, and the Chase County High School graduate says he wants to end his education career in that position.
The USD 284 Board of Education chose Dody after candidate interviews last week. Board Chair Mike Spinden says the board is looking forward to Dody’s direction.
Dody is returning to a school setting after serving as superintendent at USD 251 North Lyon County from 2014-2018, followed by time as superintendent for USD 417 Morris County from 2018-2023. Since then, Dody has been serving as an education consultant with Southeast Kansas Education Service Center. Before his time as superintendent and consultant, Dody was a math teacher at Emporia High before being part of USD 251 as principal at Americus Elementary and North Lyon County Junior High.
Spinden says there are no plans for the district to replace current school buildings with new ones now that Dody has been selected. Dody was at the helm when the USD 251 school board tried unsuccessfully three different times for new facilities, twice for a K-12 campus and once for a new K-8 building. Chase County also had serious conversations about a new K-12 building in Cottonwood Falls back in 2014-2015 before a bond vote failed and the board subsequently decided to renovate the current schools in Cottonwood Falls and Strong City.
Dody is replacing Glenna Grinstead, herself a Chase County High School graduate who is retiring after six years as district superintendent. Along with his onboarding process, Dody says he plans to be readily available to district patrons to hear their ideas and concerns as he gets started.
