Arrowhead High School names Conrad Farner as its next superintendent
The Arrowhead Union High School District will have a new superintendent by the beginning of the next school year.
Conrad Farner, the Cedarburg School District's director of human resources, will start his new role at Arrowhead on Aug. 1. He will replace current Arrowhead superintendent Laura Myrah, who plans to retire Aug. 7 after eight years in the position, an Arrowhead news release said.
Myrah announced her retirement in December 2022, citing the increased politicization of schools as her reason for doing so. She has been Arrowhead's superintendent since July 2015.
The search process included garnering feedback from the community to identify key qualities sought in the next superintendent.
The board considered 13 candidates for the position. Committees of staff, parents, community leaders, administrators and the school board interviewed the top candidates, the news release said.
Farner's "extensive and diverse experience in education, wealth of knowledge in recruiting and retaining quality educators, and high expectations for learning and opportunities for kids stood out to all involved," the release said.
Before working in Cedarburg, Farner was the Greenfield School District's superintendent and human resources director. He also has experience as a middle school teacher, middle school principal and director of technology and assessment in the West Allis-West Milwaukee School District.
Farner was a football, basketball and baseball coach earlier in his educational career. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and a master's degree and educational doctorate (all but dissertation), both from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
"It's a great place to be. I've always looked up to Arrowhead as one of those great communities and great districts, so it's a very attractive opportunity. Couldn't be more excited," said Farner in a Feb. 21 phone interview.
Farner said he thought the position would be a good fit for him based on his skillset and experiences, and familiarity with some of Arrowhead's staff members, having worked with them previously in other districts. One of those staff members is current Arrowhead High School principal Adam Kurth, whom Farner worked with while Kurth was Cedarburg High School's principal.
Having grown up in Waukesha, Farner said he, his brother, sisters and father "all played or coached for years" against Arrowhead in sports such as football, basketball, baseball and tennis. All of his children played against Arrowhead in sports too.
"We've all been there many, many times for many different games and athletic contests. It's a neat place. The campus is unusual. It's unique. The facilities look excellent. They've had a lot of success athletically and academically. I know how the community is just beautiful and supportive. All of those add up to 'of course I'm going to apply for this job,'" said Farner.
Farner also called the interview process "a great process."
"They were very thorough, asked great questions and they were just incredibly welcoming and just really made you feel at home with each of the groups that you talked to. You definitely got a good feel that the Arrowhead community is really on board and passionate about their school and excited and invested in getting the next person in that superintendent position.
"It left a really good impression. Sometimes you can go through interviews and you don't always get that positive of a feel, but in this case, it really was a very positive experience," Farner said.
Contact Alec Johnson at (262) 875-9469 or alec.johnson@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @AlecJohnson12.
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Conrad Farner to become Arrowhead High School's next superintendent
