Bayfield School District has appointed Jan Alderton as the new Bayfield Primary School principal and Bill Hesford as the district’s new assistant superintendent.
Alderton is currently the acting principal at Bayfield Primary School and will officially start her new role on Aug. 8. Hesford took over as the principal at Bayfield Middle School in November and will start his new job on July 1.
The move fills two slots in what has been a year of shuffling in the top positions at the district. In March, Kevin Aten had his contract terminated as district superintendent, and Leon Hanhardt, the assistant superintendent, was appointed to become interim superintendent for the rest of this year and the 2022-23 school year.
Hesford was principal at Bayfield Intermediate School, then was moved to Bayfield Middle School after the previous principal resigned. Derrick Martin resigned from his position at Bayfield Primary School this spring to accept a position with the Colorado Department of Education. Marcy Ham, the Bayfield High School principal, had to resign her position for personal reasons, and former BHS counselor Amy Miglinas is returning to lead the school.
“The Bayfield School District is thrilled we received such a large applicant pool of qualified candidates for both positions,” Hanhardt said in a news release earlier this week. “I am pleased that within our organization we were able to retain and promote two outstanding educators to our administration team, and know they will continue to help this district keep our main focus on students and their education.”
“I think Bill and Jan are both good choices,” said Brenda Marshall, the mother of two Bayfield graduates.
Alderton’s background in reading intervention, as well as teaching and administrative work, provide her a well-rounded background for the position, she said. Hesford builds a good rapport with students and knows the staff members, she said.
Alderton has worked for the district for 21 years, starting in 2001 as the first K-5 Spanish teacher, then served as the Bayfield Elementary School librarian, and in 2004 moved to the first grade classroom.
She taught first and second grades for 12 years and in 2016 moved into roles as a reading specialist. In addition to serving in these roles, for the past two years she has been the K-2 English language learner teacher and taught a reading intervention class at Bayfield High School. She has also served on the Instructional Leadership Team for 16 of her 21 years with the district.
Alderton graduated from Fort Lewis College with a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and multicultural communications. In 2007, she completed her master’s degree in education at Adams State University and has studied leadership, curriculum, assessment and instruction.
“Bayfield is an incredible community, and I’m delighted and honored to be chosen to lead Bayfield Primary School,” Alderton said. “I’m excited to join the administrative team and to guide the BPS staff deeper into professional excellence. At the primary school level, we have the opportunity to set our youngest learners up for long-term success and my goal is to do just that.”
Hanhardt said, “Ms. Alderton will bring a well-rounded level of experience to her new role as principal. With over two decades in education, I know she will lead the primary school successfully and prepare the students for what lies ahead.”
Hesford started as a student teacher with the Bayfield School District in 2005 and was later hired in 2006 as a teacher at the former Bayfield Elementary School. During his tenure with the district, Hesford has served the Bayfield community as a coach, teacher, assistant principal and in 2018 became the principal at Bayfield Intermediate School.
He is currently an applicant for the Rural Superintendent’s Academy hosted by the Colorado Education Initiative in an effort to further his education and contribute to supporting rural school district work in Colorado.
Hesford graduated from Stonehill College in North Easton, Massachusetts, in 1998 with a degree in business administration. He went on to complete his teacher licensure at FLC in 2006.
“I am grateful to be able to serve the students and families of the Bayfield School District in a district-level role as the assistant superintendent,” he said. “We have a great team in the district and we are ready to do amazing work for our students and families in the 2022-23 school year.”
Hanhardt said, “As a long-standing educator within the district, Mr. Hesford is a well-respected leader throughout the district, and he will be the perfect fit for his new role as the assistant superintendent.
“We are thrilled Mr. Hesford will continue his 16-year career here at Bayfield School District as he transitions to his district office administrative role.”
