KUNA — West Ada Chief Academic Officer Marcus Myers will be the next Kuna superintendent following a unanimous decision by trustees.

Trustees chose to hire the current West Ada administrator during an open meeting with no discussion after a motion by trustee Hillary Lowe. The decision followed a 90-minute executive session Tuesday night.

Three hours before the vote, Myers and his fellow candidates Ririe Superintendent Jeff Gee and West Ada Director of Education Services David Reinhart sat before a panel of community members and some 40 attendees at a public forum.

Myers’ first 90 days as superintendent, he said, will be listening, learning and building trust.

“I was given two ears and one mouth for a reason,” he told forum attendees.

Myers wants to identify Kuna’s areas of strength and put a spotlight on them by sharing students’ stories with the community, seeking the attention of civil leaders and legislators.

He finds sharing the success of Kuna’s programs important in competing with charters and private schools amid the rollout of private school tax credits and expansion of charters in the Kuna area. Valor Classical Academy, a Hillsdale charter, is slated to open in August. An Elevate Academy is also scheduled to open in Kuna in 2027.

When asked how he sees districts mishandle rapid growth, Myers said they move too quickly, without building trust.

“It takes time to build trust and plan, and to ensure there are systems and processes in place before making major reactions and decisions.”

Mistakes, he said, happen when districts try fixing problems “in the moment.”

Prior to the forum, candidates spent the day in Kuna, starting with interviews in the morning. Trustees toured the district, then held a forum for district staff. Their last item before trustees called a meeting to hire one of the three was the public community forum.

Forum attendees could not submit questions. Instead, they filled out comment cards, and submitted them for trustees to read in executive session before making a hiring decision.

Myers talked about his plans for the future. He emphasized including as many people as possible in making decisions they’ll be affected by.

“I think that, proactively, it’s important to build trust and relationships before a situation arises,” he said.

Myers has experience with tumultuous public relations. During controversy over a poster in former West Ada teacher Sarah Inama’s classroom, Myers faced intense scrutiny from the public.

All three candidates said they would improve district communications with constituents and families.

Gee leaned on his experience as a superintendent in Ririe, a small district closer in size to Kuna than West Ada, giving examples of situations he’s faced in his role.

Gee referred to an incident where his high school introduced weekly grade checks for athletes, which caused 11 of 36 football players to be ineligible at the 2nd game of the season.

Reinhart drew on his time in both Kuna and neighboring West Ada. He also took advantage of his insider knowledge.

“Every day, 254 students leave (Kuna) and drive down the road and join the (district) I work for,” Reinhart said. “That’s roughly $1.5 million a year (Kuna loses) because people are choosing other things.”

Current Kuna Superintendent Kim Bekkedahl said she’s excited. She expected the process to take this long, she said, when she stepped in as the interim superintendent in 2024.

“Between the districts (Kuna and West Ada), we have a good relationship,” Bekkedahl said. She will retire after the school year.