Kierstin Hurtt is the school superintendent for the Valley-Edinburg School District #118, serving the communities of Hoople, Crystal, Edinburg, Gardar, and Mountain, North Dakota. Graduating from Concordia College in 2009, she began her career in education at Park River Area School as a junior high and high school English teacher. During her time spent teaching, Kierstin enjoyed coaching speech and directing the school’s one-act play. She earned her Master’s in Education from Minot State University, where she spent extensive time working under the Northern Plains Writing Project, learning how to enrich her classroom through engaging in writing, reading, and pedagogical work. In 2019, Kierstin began working on Educational Leadership coursework through Concordia Saint Paul, and later took the position of Middle School Principal at Valley-Edinburg School District. In 2021, she completed her Ed.OL coursework through North Dakota State University and became Valley-Edinburg’s school superintendent.
Kierstin’s greatest interest is rural community development, celebrating what small communities in North Dakota have to offer and making sure rural communities are desirable places to live. In 2019, she and other founding board members opened Lil’ Spuds Childcare, a licensed childcare center housed within the Valley-Edinburg School District’s primary school in Hoople. This work has helped retain families in the school district by providing much needed childcare to Hoople and neighboring communities. In 2021, Valley-Edinburg established its Extended School Program, providing expanded learning opportunities to students and support to working families in the district. Today she leads her school’s continuous improvement work to collaboratively bring progressive learning opportunities to all students in her district. She is an avid grant writer and member of regional educational collaboratives Walsh-Pembina School Administrators, the Red River Valley Education Cooperative, and the Pembina County Educators Association.
In 2022, Kierstin helped establish the Hoople Beautification Committee, a community club committed to completing annual beautification fundraising and projects. This work has brought a mix of cultural celebrations, local art and enhancements, and small-town pride to her rural North Dakota community.
Counties served (figures taken from 2020 census): Pembina County, population 6,844; Walsh County, population 10,563; Nelson County, population 3,015; Grand Forks County, population 73,170