Throughout my education career, I’ve probably worked with more diverse populations across the country than most—high-poverty districts, middle class schools, districts with large English-learner populations, Native communities, and Hutterite colonies. One thing is a constant: Families want the best possible education for their children, including access to meaningful opportunities in their public schools. School district leaders in Fort Ransom worried they weren’t going to be able to continue delivering that.

Lisbon and Fort Ransom were already talking about reorganizing when I became superintendent of the Lisbon school district in 2021. Fort Ransom’s small community of about 100 people has been served by a single school since 1916. In 2024-25, which would turn out to be the school’s final academic year, no more than a dozen students were enrolled.

Even though everyone knew the school was going to close, the dam broke wide open when it began to struggle with finding teachers. That’s when Fort Ransom’s superintendent, Dr. Steven Johnson, and I sat down to talk in earnest about what the school closure would look like. We had numerous discussions about the significant challenges the school was facing—declining enrollment, severe facility issues, and staffing shortages. The district’s long-term sustainability was becoming increasingly difficult.

A school reorganization is not a common occurrence in North Dakota. More typically, schools dissolve because it’s easier administratively. A reorganization involves many steps and challenges along the way. And closing a school is never easy, especially a rural school that has served as the hub of the community. There would be a lot of legal paperwork. A committee with representatives from both towns would have to be created. The committee would need to agree on a reorganization plan, which would have to be approved by local and state authorities. And we’d need to hold a special election, requiring a simple majority of both communities to formally approve the Fort Ransom-Lisbon school district reorganization.

With all his experience with school reorganization, Dr. Johnson believed it would be possible and laid out the pros: the long working relationship between the two districts, the familiarity of the communities with each other, and the additional academic and extracurricular opportunities that a newly reorganized district could offer Fort Ransom students. We were also lucky that there was no history of bad blood between the two communities. Because Dr. Johnson is from Lisbon and has had a long record of working with the district, we were able to rely on the relationships that he had built over decades. This helped move the process forward.

We had our challenges, including the sudden death of the Fort Ransom school board president in the fall of 2025. That was very hard on all of us. But we took the bull by the horns.

Our committee meetings were held at Lisbon High School. We were transparent with the communities, providing opportunities for people to voice concerns, ask questions, and receive honest answers—all of which were critical to maintaining support. Over the course of the year—from the time Fort Ransom School closed its doors to students to the time voters approved the reorganization in a special election this summer—we faced minimal opposition, including from local and state policymakers. The trust we organizers had with each other, built over multiple honest conversations, was key.

Superintendents are viewed as leaders within their communities, and their ability to work with others and guide their districts through a reorganization process—or any other challenge—is critical to success. A major initiative, like the one we had, takes strong superintendent relationships.

Dr. Johnson and I often found ourselves representing the interests of our respective districts, but our focus on the students helped us navigate challenging discussions about finances, staffing, facilities, and community concerns without allowing personal agendas or institutional pride to overshadow the larger purpose. The experience reinforced my belief that successful leadership is built on trust, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to doing what is right for students—even when the decisions are difficult.

We were extremely fortunate that Dr. Johnson and I have had a strong professional relationship. He is a straight shooter who has helped school districts across the state navigate change. He knew how to make this work, in part because of his relationships developed through years of public service in the Lisbon and Fort Ransom area. Community members felt comfortable approaching him with questions, trusting that he would provide honest and accurate answers. He also had skin in the game. He’s a landowner and taxpayer in both districts and understood the financial implications for both communities.

This reorganization will be a big part of Johnson’s legacy. He brought these districts together, and no one had their feelings hurt. It’s his crowning achievement—one of them. He was the right person in the right place at the right time to help us get through this. I’m not sure it would have been so easy without him.