Nathan Burch is eager to return to the Fox C-6 School District, where he graduated from and later started his teaching career.
Burch, 42, of Manchester has been named the district’s next assistant superintendent of human resources. His first day in his new job will be July 1, when he replaces Kelly Bracht, who is retiring at the end of the school year.
Bracht has been the district’s assistant superintendent of human resources since the 2015-2016 school year. Her salary this school year is $163,255.
Burch’s salary will be $145,000. He is being paid a salary of $138,289 as principal at Claymont Elementary School in the Parkway School District, according to Parkway Board of Education documents.
Burch graduated from Seckman High School in 2001, and he started his career in education in 2006 as a teacher at the Fox district’s Lone Dell Elementary School.
“Fox is a place that has always been a special place for me,” Burch said. “I went to school here. I taught here. It is where I got my start as an administrator.
“When I saw the opening was there, it was something I wanted, to see if I could give back and be part of the process of what they are trying to accomplish.”
“His familiarity with the district will be an asset for him as he transitions back to Fox,” Superintendent Paul Fregeau said. “That will really assist in his learning curve that a different external candidate would not have at their disposal.”
Fregeau said 24 people applied for the assistant superintendent position and six people were interviewed.
Fregeau said Burch’s love for the Fox district and his focus on people and relationships made him a standout among the candidates.
“He also had a good vision for recruitment and retention of quality people,” Fregeau said.
Burch’s path back to Fox
Burch taught at Lone Dell Elementary for nine years before being promoted to assistant principal at Clyde Hamrick Elementary in 2015.
He left the Fox district in 2017 to become the principal at Bierbaum Elementary in the Mehlville School District. Then, in 2019, he was named the principal at Claymont Elementary, where he was working when he was named the 2024 Missouri Principal of the Year by the Missouri Association of Elementary School Principals.
Burch said his experiences as an assistant principal and principal have prepared him to move into the Central Office role for the Fox district.
“Though most of my day-to-day things are operating inside of a building, we have to have a global view of how the district is functioning to make sure the choices we are making are positively impacting kids,” he said. “I think having that mindset of what is good for all kids is not something that will be new to me. There might be different aspects to that, but the overall concept is not something new.”
Burch earned a bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Southeast Missouri State University, and he has a master’s degree in educational administration form Missouri Baptist University. He recently earned a doctorate in educational leadership and superintendency from Maryville University.
Burch said one of his goals is to support the Fox C-6 mission to educate students through hiring, developing and retaining staff members.
“We spend a lot of time coming up with plans to help make sure kids have support,” he said. “HR needs to be in alignment with that and working in the same direction and meeting the goals we are setting out.
“How you do that is where my ideas are. It is making sure teachers feel heard, are supported and are getting what they need, and making sure we are being creative in how we recruit and get teachers into our school district. It all goes back to what our goals are as a district.”
Burch said after being away from the district for eight years, he likely will have to relearn some of the processes Fox C-6 has in place, adding that the core of what makes Fox C-6 special has not changed since he left.
“It is people who value the community, value being together, value having their kids come to school and have a good education,” he said. “It is staff who care deeply about kids and do whatever they can to support kids. That hasn’t changed. My work will be to learn the processes and make sure we are giving that support.”
Burch, who attended the district’s Jan. 14 Board of Education meeting, said he will spend some time with Bracht to make the transition easier.
“I feel lucky to have this time in between to learn a lot, so I can hit the ground running in July when I get started,” he said.
Burch and his wife, Lizzie, have two children, a 13-year-old daughter and 12-year-old son.