4/1/25 Ripon School Board Announces Superintendent Finalists
1 April 2025 News
The Ripon Area School District Board of Education is pleased to announce the
selection of three finalists to interview for the position of Ripon Superintendent: Jessica
Johnson, Ron Rivard, and Natasha Rowell.
The search Firm Hazard, Young, and Attea (HYA) was hired to conduct focus group meetings,
conduct interviews, and survey of students, parents, staff, and the community. With its help the
Board identified seven semi-finalists from a pool of 16 applicants and conducted semi-finalist
interviews on Saturday, March 29, to determine three finalists.
Jessica Johnson has served as the Superintendent for Dodgeland School District for the past
three years. She began her administrative career as the principal of Dodgeland Elementary
School and district assessment coordinator for eleven years, and then moved to the principal of
Dodgeland Middle/High School and district assessment coordinator for three years. Johnson
earned her bachelor’s degree from Minnesota State College & University, earned her master’s
and principal licensure from Arizona State University, West Campus, and her doctorate and
superintendent licensure from Edgewood College in Madison. She has been an adjunct
professor with Viterbo University in the Educational Leadership Department since 2016.
Ron Rivard has served as the principal and curriculum director for Randall Consolidated School
District J1 for the past three years. Before that role, he spent seven years in the School District
of South Milwaukee as both an elementary school principal and a high school associate
principal. Rivard served two years as a director of instruction at the School District of Waukesha
and two years as a director of curriculum and instruction for the Waterford Graded School
District. His administrative roles began at Muskego-Norway School District, where he served as
a middle school associate principal for three years and an elementary school principal for six
years. Rivard earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, his
principal and director of instruction licensure from Cardinal Stritch University, and his
superintendent licensure from Cardinal Stritch and Concordia Universities.
Natasha Rowell has served as the principal at Kohler Middle and High School in the Kohler
School District for the past 2.5 years. Rowell began her administrative career as the principal at
Martinsville High School and Albert Harris Elementary School in Martinsville, Virginia, a position
she held for six years. Rowell served as the principal at Preble High School in Green Bay, WI, for
ten years before moving to the Kohler School District. She earned her bachelor’s degree at the
University of Port Elizabeth in South Africa. She has a Master’s from Cardinal Stritch University
and earned her superintendent licensure from St. Mary’s University, Winona, MN.
As part of the selection process, the three finalists will spend a “Day in the District” on
Thursday, April 3, 2025. The day will include a tour of the buildings with the school principals; a
tour of the City of Ripon; meeting time with staff and students; and a public Meet & Greet in
the Ripon High School Community Room from 3:45 pm to 5:15 pm. All interested families,
parents, and community members are invited to participate and will be able to provide the
Board with feedback online. The Meet & Greet sessions will be livestreamed on the Ripon
Channel for those not able to attend.
The Board of Education will conduct final interviews on Monday, April 7 with final approval
expected at the regular April 21, 2025, board meeting. This will allow the new superintendent
time to learn more about the community and Ripon Area School District before starting on July
1, 2025.
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