“Yelm Superintendent Brian Wharton shows where a large, pre-fab classroom
building specifically designated for freshmen will be located on the school campus.”
Photo credit: Steve Bloom, The Olympian.

– “Message from New Superintendent Brian Wharton”
“I am honored to serve as the Superintendent of Yelm Community Schools. My six years, so far, in the district have been the most rewarding of my career. The support this community bestows on its students and staff is amazing and I am committed to leading our continued success. We have important work ahead of us and I know the Yelm community wants the best education possible for our students.”

“When the new school year begins, there are three major issues that our district will have to manage:
* Responding to increased enrollment throughout the district that is significantly impacting our elementary school facilities
* Preparing for the reconfiguration of our schools to K-5 elementary schools, 6-8 middle schools, and a 9-12 comprehensive high school
* Successfully implementing two major curriculum programs in elementary literacy and secondary math.”
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– “Yelm, North Thurston and Olympia schools prepare for more kids”
“The fastest growing district is Yelm, which spills into a small portion of Pierce County, and has grown by about 1,340 students, or a whopping 30.7 percent, since 2000.

‘We’re growing like crazy,’ said Yelm superintendent Brian Wharton.

The largely rural district is a popular bedroom community for JBLM’s military families and people who commute to jobs in Olympia, Tacoma and Puyallup, Wharton said.

‘There’s a lot of houses being built right now,’ he said. ‘And we know we’re an attractive community, and we’ll take all of the kids.’

But the district has experienced growing pains, too,” quoting Lisa Pemberton, The Olympian.
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