I “ve got the job of a lifetime

Hyde looks back on time as BSD Superintendent.

It’s been said all good things must come to an end and for many in the Bremerton community that’s exactly what April 14 will be as Bremerton School District (BSD) Superintendent Bette Hyde moves on to Olympia to run the Washington State Department of Early Learning.

“The governor had been talking to me for a while and I finally decided it was time,” Hyde said. “Now I’ve got the job of a lifetime.”

That’s not to say serving as the superintendent of BSD hasn’t been a rewarding experience, even with the dark cloud of suspicion, accusations and allegations made when the BSD Board of Directors brought Hyde back as interim superintendent after she retired at the end of the 2007-08 school year.

“I’m proud of the work we’ve done in early childhood education, which is nationally recognized,” she said. “In the seven years I’ve been here we’ve passed a bond and two levies and we have a beautiful building at the high school and middle school.”

The community’s support of the district has been instrumental in the district’s improvement efforts, which Hyde credits the growing number of partnerships the district has across the community.

“We have engineers from PSNS, who tutor students at Naval Avenue Early Learning Center, and the Lions Club has always been there whenever we’ve needed anything,” she said, as she pointed to the Kiwanis and Rotary clubs, the Boys and Girls Club, the YMCA and the city of Bremerton among the committed partners with the district.

Everyone within the district has been great to work with over the past seven years and while Hyde has received recognition for what the district has done, she said, “It’s not about me. It’s what we as a team have done.”

Being named to the cabinet post by Gov. Chris Gregoire in February is in some respects a dream deferred for Hyde as she returned as BSD superintendent after retiring, not out of second-guessing and being wistful about her decision, but rather “because I felt the district needed me and the board asked me to come back,” she said.

Instead of pursuing other lucrative endeavors, Hyde said she returned to do what she believed was best for the district and never anticipated the subsequent uproar that ensued over a number of issues.

“These were people who I had never seen before and who didn’t know me,” she said. “I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I was hurt by it.”

Since the furor has subsided, Hyde said she hasn’t heard from or seen those who publicly criticized her as the school board has moved ahead with the search for her replacement.

Now with her retirement less than a month away, Hyde has had time to peacefully reflect on what she hopes her legacy will be as she looks ahead to the new challenges in Olympia.

“I would like to be known as the administration whose work benefitted all kids learning and did it with solid data and heart,” Hyde said. “That would be a good legacy.”

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