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The Putnam City Board of Education in mid-May voted unanimously to hire Paul Hurst as the next superintendent for the district. Hurst will take the helm of the district on July 1 following the retirement of Dr. Jim Capps.
 Hurst, a 32-year veteran of public education, is currently superintendent of Tahlequah Public Schools. Hurst is just the sixth superintendent the district has hired since 1950.
“We’re excited to be able to employ Paul Hurst, and he’s excited about coming to Putnam City. He’s energetic, student-oriented and ready to get out in the schools and meet people,” says Julie Jenison, board president.
Hurst has served as Tahlequah’s superintendent since 2001. Earlier this school year his work in Tahlequah was recognized when he was chosen as Oklahoma’s 2008 Administrator of the Year by the Oklahoma Association of School Administrators.
Before his time in Tahlequah, Hurst was with Mid-Del Schools for more than 24 years. He served as the district’s assistant superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction for 6 ½ years and was the district’s director of Secondary Instruction for four years before that. Hurst also spent four years in Mid-Del as principal of Kerr Junior High School and three years as an assistant principal at Monroney Junior High School.
Hurst’s teaching career includes five years as a teacher and coach at Del City High School and two years as a teacher and coach at Del Crest Junior High School.
Hurst holds a bachelor’s degree in human development from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, and a master’s of education degree from the University of Central Oklahoma.
Hurst is president-elect of the Oklahoma Association of School Administrators, a member of the State Superintendent’s Advisory Council, and a member of the Teacher Education Council at Northeastern State University. He is a past member of the State Superintendent’s School Improvement Committee and immediate past executive board member of the Oklahoma Schools Advisory Council.
Hurst enters a position that in Putnam City is noted for its stability. The last five Putnam City superintendents held their positions for an average of 11 ½ years, substantially longer than the national average of about 2 ½ years for superintendents in urban areas.
“Paul is a class act who will be very successful here. People will be pleased once they meet him and find out what he’s all about,” says Jerry Cramer, board vice-president.
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