The Blue Valley School District has announced its next superintendent: Gillian Chapman, a former Shawnee Mission School District administrator who left Johnson County 10 years ago to lead a school district in Wyoming.
The Blue Valley Board of Education’s decision, made in a special meeting Friday, comes after a months-long search to replace outgoing Superintendent Tonya Merrigan, who announced her plans to retire this summer at the end of the current school year.
“I think sometimes we can be pretty focused on serious topics, and education is supposed to be fun,” Chapman said. “It’s supposed to ignite a flame of curiosity and ignite a focus on a bright future we can’t even imagine.
“I’m hoping that together we can open all the doors for students, and all they have to do is walk through them, knowing that this community stands behind them and they’ve had an outstanding foundation in which to build their futures.”
Chapman will wrap up her current term as superintendent of Teton County School District No. 1, a district of roughly 2,900 students in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. She has served as that district’s leader since 2015.
In 2023, Chapman was honored as Wyoming Superintendent of the Year.
“What struck me most about Dr. Chapman was her curiosity, her relationship building skills and her clear sense of purpose that was intertwined with both empathy and integrity,” said board member Clay Norkey. “I think that is key.”
Chapman’s career began in Shawnee Mission
Chapman began her career with Shawnee Mission as a French and Spanish teacher at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in 1994.
She moved on to roles as an associate principal at that school and as principal at Hocker Grove Middle School before joining the central office staff.
From 2008 to 2015, she served as the district’s associate superintendent of administrative services for secondary education before leaving for Wyoming.
“I cannot think of a better person to take over the Blue Valley School District on July 1 than Dr. Chapman,” Merrigan said. “Dr. Chapman and I have known each other for, I don’t know how many years, but she was one of the very first people who reached out to me when I was named superintendent of Blue Valley in 2019.”
Chapman earned a Bachelor of Arts from Pepperdine University in Malibu, California
She also has a Master of Science in education from the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Missouri, and a Doctorate in education from Saint Louis University.
Merrigan has been in role since 2019
Midway through Merrigan’s role as superintendent, she laid out her goals for the district’s future, namely focusing on developing workplace skills through the district’s Career Ready Programs and helping students recover from “learning loss” during the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago.
Once Merrigan finishes the school year out as superintendent, Olathe Public Schools’ Brent Yeager will be the county’s longest-tenured public school superintendent. He was appointed in 2021.
Last year, Blue Valley Schools was recognized as the top district in Kansas, while also securing a place within the top 1% of districts nationwide, according to Niche.
“You have to take risks”
Chapman said she hopes to continue the district’s high performance, while also expanding personalized learning. Personalized learning attempts to tailor students’ educational experience to their individual needs.
“In order to really grow, you have to take risks, and you have to feel comfortable when that first attempt at learning spells out fail,” Chapman said, “but fail forward and fail knowing that there’s a net and leap like there’s a net every time, because that’s what the Blue Valley School District is.”
Chapman said she sets the example, learning how to do something new every year. When she moved to Wyoming, it was how to ski.
“I say every year because sometimes it takes me the whole year to get there,” Chapman said. “I’ve tried to learn something new every year to challenge myself. It also helps me put myself in the shoes of our students and our families and really face fear and be vulnerable.”
