The word "unique" is often overused.

But that's not the case when it comes to SPS Superintendent Mark Olmstead sharing his high praise for the Shelby area. He believes the school district and community are practically a perfect fit.

Without a doubt, Shelby has seen a change of demographics over the years. However, the school district and community have retained its friendly down-to-earth small-town appeal.

"The school district and the community are interconnected," explained Mark. "Shelby is distinct, with its caring and personable environment."

He points out the school district currently has about a 40% Hispanic population, representative of the blended diversity in the community.

"This fosters a pleasant small-town atmosphere that I believe also carries over into our schools and gives it great appeal," he said.

Mark has steadily assumed additional leadership responsibilities since being hired as the Shelby Middle School principal in 2016.

He then served as Secondary School Principal, High School Principal and is now entering his third year as district Superintendent.

"Looking ahead, we're excited about the development and implementation of a professional learning community in each school," said Mark. "When teachers can get together regularly to review academic data and build on what's working instructionally, students benefit."

Mark appreciates that in his role as Superintendent he can work with the district leadership to significantly influence the kind of teaching and learning students will consistently experience.

Improving the quality of the district's facility infrastructure has also been a focus for Mark.

He has overseen the opening of a new elementary school last January as well as the safety and security upgrades to the high school.

The work goes on as he and the leadership team are currently planning for renovations to the middle school next summer.

Mark received his bachelor's degree at Michigan and master's degree at Grand Valley State University. 

After college, he was a high school history and psychology teacher and then the athletic director at Kingsley.

Following his service there, he was the assistant high school principal and middle school principal at Mason County Central before coming to Shelby eight years ago.

Mark and his wife, Heidi, have four children.

Two of them are now in college after graduating from Shelby and the youngest is a senior at the high school.

"We're a family of proud Tigers," he said.

"I'm glad I have such strong feelings for Shelby's uniqueness and all our community offers," Mark said. "This makes it easier to balance my family and school commitments and defer some of my hobbies for the time being."

"I guess it'd be fair to say my favorite hobbies right now are simply camping and spending time with my family," he said.

Mark Olmstead

Superintendent of Shelby Public Schools