Alumna Selected for Nebraska Education Post

Jane Stavem ’89 was recently named the associate superintendent of instruction for Lincoln Public Schools in Nebraska. Stavem completed both a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in K-12 education at Bethel before going on to receive a doctorate at the University of Nebraska. “Bethel was a place that provided an environment that drew me there as [an undergraduate] student, and kept me there as a graduate,” she says.

Her time at Bethel provided her with strong examples of excellence in leadership, Stavem says. Robert Berglund, Bethel choir director during Stavem’s college years, inspired her work ethic. “[His standards] created in me a desire for excellence and an understanding of the daily discipline it takes to achieve at a high level,” she says. At Bethel, she also observed a woman in an administrative role for one of the first times, when Nancy Vall taught Stavem’s first education class. “By the end of her class I knew that not only did I want to teach, but I also wanted to be a principal,” says Stavem.

Stavem now takes her own leadership skills to her new position as associate superintendent in a district that serves nearly 34,000 students, 43% of whom live in poverty. “This new role provides the opportunity for me to serve in a capacity that I never envisioned for myself, but one that God has already envisioned for me. Therefore I trust Him to walk with me as I undertake my new responsibilities, understanding His promises and claiming them as truth.” Stavem begins her new position on July 1.