Lewiston School District Superintendent Bob Donaldson says his last year in the position was the most memorable.

In addition to navigating the COVID-19 pandemic, Donaldson guided the district in opening the new Lewiston High School after three failed bond attempts.

Now, after 32 years in the school district and eight years as superintendent, Donaldson’s ready to step aside. His last day is June 30. Assistant Superintendent Lance Hansen will take on the superintendent position at the end of the month.

“The challenging part was getting the new high school open, overlaid with the pandemic and protocols we had to develop,” he said. “The rewarding part was being able to have face-to-face instruction.”

Retired director of business services at the district Katharine McPherson said she remembers Donaldson making the time almost every day to visit the schools to develop relationships with teachers and students.

“If there was something special going on at a school, he never missed it,” McPherson said. “He was always, always there.”

During the pandemic, Donaldson worked hand-in-hand with public health officials in the state to monitor COVID-19 cases and respond when necessary. The school district waited until the day after school got out to relax its protocols, for the sake of “consistency.”

“We weren’t heavy-handed about face coverings,” Donaldson said. “The idea of changing it that close to the end — we don’t want to take any chances.”

After opening for in-person instruction Aug. 31, schools in the district never missed a day. Starting later in the fall, parents, faculty and staff members received an email every morning with the latest rundown of cases separated by new, active and aggregate for each school.

“We were totally transparent,” Donaldson said. “It was probably the most significant thing we did, clear up until the last day of school.”

Kim Eimers, director of student services at the school district, worked extensively with the superintendent’s team to manage COVID-19 cases over the last year. She and Donaldson established a system for reporting new case numbers that added consistency from the moment a student tested positive or reported exposure.

Amid the constant changes, Eimers said she always felt supported. At times, she and Donaldson would be on the phone off and on from early in the morning until late at night.

“Things were so fluid, but I never felt like it was too late to call,” Eimers said. “He will be missed.”

According to her, Donaldson would never say he’s just an educator.

“It’s his passion, and Lance is the same way,” Eimers said. “Working with them is always an adventure, in the best possible way.”

In addition to building the new high school and preparing it for students this year, the district reconfigured its remaining schools into a new system. Junior highs became middle schools with grades 6-8, elementary schools switched to K-5 and the high school now houses grades 9-12.

Through it all, Donaldson kept his team united. He only remembers one school board vote that wasn’t unanimous.

“They don’t always agree on everything, but when they come to a decision, they pull together on it,” he said. “That’s huge.”

This kind of open communication worked to the district’s advantage, Lewiston School Board President Brad Rice said, adding that Donaldson’s strengths as a leader made serving on the board of trustees easier, and many times, fun.

“You get the sense that he can empathize and relate, but also knows when to be firm,” Rice said. “He checks all the boxes.”

Rice and Donaldson spent considerably more time together because of the pandemic than they otherwise would have, according to Rice. All the protocols, reopening phases and time spent preparing for how COVID-19 would affect the school district brought the two close.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to get to spend time with him outside of district business,” Rice said. “Where he’s not inhibited from being what I’ll call the real Bob.”

When the district ran a bond for the new high school in 2017, after three previous failed attempts, Donaldson made sure every question from the community was answered. He did it all with the help of Hansen.

“He was our boots on the ground,” Donaldson said. “He knows more about the design work, the mechanical systems — everything in that building — than I do.”

Thanks to the pair’s dedication to community involvement with various stakeholders, the bond for the new high school passed in 2017 with a 75 percent majority, eventually replacing the old high school built in 1928.

“We need their support in order to meet the needs of our students,” Hansen said. “But you build equity with the community over time; that doesn’t happen overnight.”

In what were dubbed “cottage meetings,” Donaldson and Hansen went to homes, businesses, hospitals, assisted living facilities and more to answer questions from the community about the proposed bond. These totaled more than 100 visits between the administrators, Donaldson said.

“When decisions are made, people feel like you’ve taken more than just one perspective,” Hansen said. “It doesn’t necessarily mean you always have to agree, but at least they feel like they’ve been heard.”

When the decision-making got tough, Donaldson heard people’s concerns and made sure they were all answered, according to McPherson.

“He was never somebody that sat in an ivory tower,” she said. “He did make high-level decisions, but he made sure he was much more well-rounded than that.”

A few informational fairs also took place during the bond campaign at locations such as Lewis-Clark State College. There, individuals could stop by various booths for more intimate conversations with teachers, contractors or architects regarding their concerns.

“I believe our community has high expectations of our district,” Donaldson said. “They’ve demonstrated that over and over again with their votes.”

Hansen, who’s worked with Donaldson on a daily basis for more than 13 years, said their relationship is “like hand in glove.”

When Donaldson left his position of six years as principal of the high school, Hansen, his assistant principal, took over. When Donaldson was promoted to superintendent, Hansen picked up the assistant superintendent job.

“We worked as a team this whole time,” Donaldson said. “There couldn’t be a better moment for the district to benefit from his leadership.”

After working alongside Donaldson for much of his tenure, Hansen is well-positioned to assume leadership of the school district, Rice said. He also brings a different personality and set of skills to the job.

“Lance has big shoes to fill, but he knows the methods that work,” Rice said. “There’s something in this transition that can help spark the district into a period of healthy growth and change.”

Now that the school district has completed its first year with students in the new high school, Rice is excited to turn the attention back to academic achievement and focus on early childhood literacy, among other goals.

“Now that we’re past the whole facilities piece, we can get right down to business,” he said. “I think Lance has the same objective.”

While Hansen has yet to meet with board members to discuss priorities for the school district, he said he plans to continue to build on the foundation established under Donaldson’s leadership, including a positive relationship with support staff and good communication.

He also looks forward to getting to know his soon-to-be former boss outside of the workplace.

“Bob has been extremely supportive of me, all the way through,” Hansen said. “I don’t think it’s going to be him just walking out the door. My commitment is to the children, teachers and support staff of the Lewiston School District.”

Donaldson, meanwhile, will see what the rest of his future holds. He may dabble in part-time consulting for public education.

“I’m not good at sitting around,” he said.

Palermo may be contacted at apalermo@lmtribune.com. Follow her on Twitter @apalermotweets.