During a person's lifetime, one is bound to have several careers. It is not as common as it once was to stay at one job for 25 years. Jim Busta is one of those rare individuals to have a long 25-year career as the superintendent of one school.
Busta recently completed 25 years as superintendent at Spring Grove Public Schools. For this accomplishment, he received recognition from the American Association of School Administrators at the National Superintendent Convention in Arizona.
"I am in a unique position in that all 25 of my years as superintendent have been in the same district," Busta commented. "The average tenure of a superintendent is usually only four to six years and even less in large school districts."
Friends, past school board members and family are honoring his years of service to the school district with a special reception following Music-in-the-Park on Wednesday, July 21, in Viking Memorial Park in downtown Spring Grove.
The Spring Grove Lions Club will be serving concessions beginning at 6 p.m. The music begins at 6:30 p.m. and will feature the Jim Busta Band. Mollie Busta will be home for the occasion and will be singing with the band.
Following the music, friends and family of Busta invite people to a reception in his honor with cake and punch. Past board members, friends, and family members will be sharing a few words and memories of Busta's career, which began in 1985.
"Part of a superintendent's job is hiring staff and looking at the quality of the school district (which) reflects on what a good job Jim did over the past 25 years," commented Karry Thorson, former school board member.
When Busta moved his family to Spring Grove from Iowa in 1985 to begin his first superintendent job, his children were young - Lisa, seventh grade, Chad third grade, Mollie, first grade, and Jason was 4 years old. His children are now all adults and Jim and his wife, Mary Lou are grandparents.
"Spring Grove became a very good fit for our family and our kids," Busta remarked. "It is a vibrant community and I've always been very appreciative of the strong curriculum, the athletic programs, the music programs and the other fine arts programs in our school."
There have been many highlights in Busta's career as superintendent. Some of those include the building bond issues in 1988-89 from which the media center, new classroom space, the practice gym, and the elevator and handicapped ramps were added.
Another highlight was the refurbishing of the upper level of the building with new lighting, flooring, handicapped accessible bathroom and new air-handling system.
"The community has always been very supportive of the school," Busta said. "Without that support, the school wouldn't be as successful as it is."
He has worked with many school board members during his 25-year tenure. Some board members served 10 to 15 years with him.
"All of the board members have been good to work with. They have always been looking out for the good of the school district," Busta said. "The teachers and support staff have been a great group to work with as well and really care about their students' education."
"My family has been a very important part of my career. I couldn't have had a career like this without their support and especially Mary Lou's," Busta added. "I am most thankful for her."
Stop by the park on Wednesday night and take a moment to enjoy some great music and food and wish Busta well as he begins a new journey in his career.
