New United South Central Schools superintendent Taylor Topinka stands outside the main entrance to the school. Topinka took over for former superintendent Keith Fleming this past July 1. Topinka was formerly the principal at Granada-Huntley-East Chain.

Though his original plans may have been to become a lawyer, new United South Central superintendent Taylor Topinka is very happy he ended up in the education field.

“It was my plan to be a lawyer,” Topinka says. “I had even been accepted into law school.”

Topinka was at St. Cloud State and was working on an undergrad degree in social studies.

“I felt like social studies would fit in well with becoming a lawyer,” Topinka explains. “But, after student teaching I fell in love with being an educator.”

Topinka grew up in Richmond, which is part of the St. Cloud metropolitan area.

“Highway 22 ends in Richmond,” he comments. “I graduated from the Rocori High School which serves the towns of Rockville, Cold Spring and Richmond.”

While in high school he played football, was in band and the drumline.

“I graduated from high school in a class of 201 students,” Topinka says. “We were large enough that most students specialized in one sport, although we felt Rocori was a small school compared to St. Cloud and other schools we competed against.”

It was near the end of his first year of teaching at RTR (Russell-Tyler-Ruthton) in Tyler that Topinka began working on his Master’s degree by taking online classes at St. Mary’s University in Winona.

“That took me about a year and a half to complete and then I immediately began working on getting my principal’s license through online courses at Hamline University,” he shares. “I was hired as a principal at Granada-Huntley-East Chain for the 2019-2020 school year and had to get two more classes completed to receive my license.”

Topinka was interviewed for the job at GHEC by current Blue Earth Area superintendent Mandy Fletcher.

“I was interviewed by Mandy, who was the superintendent at GHEC at the time, at about the same time she was interviewing for the superintendent’s position at Blue Earth Area,” he explains. “So, she had a hand in hiring me but we never actually worked together.”

Once he arrived at GHEC, Topinka took a little break from furthering his education but then began working towards getting his superintendent’s license, which he notes was a one-year program.

“GHEC superintendent Doug Storbeck was very good in helping me and spending time with me to help me experience what a superintendent does,” he says. “I also was able to spend time in the Fairmont School District which gave me some experience in a larger school.”

He is presently working on his doctorate in Educational Practice and Leadership at the University of North Dakota.

“I guess I don’t know what to do if I am not going to college,” he says with a smile. “I am going at a slower pace than I have in the past.”

Topinka was announced as the new superintendent for USC in January of this year and began his duties in July. He replaces Keith Fleming who came to USC in 2017.

“My wife, Stefanie, and I are both small town kind of people,” he explains. “She grew up in the tiny town of Denver, Iowa, which is near Waterloo.”

Stefanie is an elementary teacher at GHEC. The couple have a two-year-old son named Thane.

Topinka mentions he and Stefanie would like to move to the Wells area. They currently reside in Fairmont.

“We haven’t been able to find a house yet,” he comments. “Stefanie and I talked it over and we feel it makes sense for us to be in Wells. We would like to settle here and not move for awhile.”

Even though he may have been thinking of being a lawyer, Topinka mentions it really should not be too surprising he ended up in the education field.

“Both grandparents, my mom and my aunts were all involved in education, so it’s kind of a natural fit,” he adds.

He also shares the reason he decided to pursue becoming an administrator.

“After teaching and observing, I felt being an administrator would provide me with the best opportunity to impact students,” he comments. “So, that is the route I decided to take.”

And he continues learning even as he begins his first year as a superintendent.

“I had always been involved more in the high school side of things,” Topinka explains. “Now, I am seeing the whole picture and learning more about the younger grades.”

He is excited to be at USC and reveals he had his eye on this job for awhile.

“I knew somebody who taught in the USC School District and they had told me Mr. Fleming was going to resign about a year and a half before it happened,” Topinka says. “USC is a district I was quite familiar with while at GHEC and I had been impressed with the school and the community support the district receives.”

And now that he has been on the job for a couple of months he remains impressed.

“I truly have a hard time seeing any negatives,” Topinka adds. “We have a great student body, wonderful teachers, an excellent support staff, a good School Board and we are in an outstanding community.”

When he is not busy with school business he enjoys golfing and spending time on the lake and with his family.

He states his first goal is to learn and observe.

“There are so many positives and I don’t want to upset or change what is working,” Topinka comments. “I do want to improve our digital communication. We will also be working on our five-year strategic plan which will be a good opportunity to gather the thoughts and goals we all share as a district.”

He says he is also excited to build relationships with people, whether it’s the students, the staff, or the parents.

“I am excited and humbled to have the opportunity to be here at USC,” he concludes. “I look forward to working with the school and members of the community to figure out the best direction and goals for our district.”