Recollections of John Gott

Dr. John Gott, former superintendent of the North Thurston School District died this week at his home in Panorama.  Obituaries and other recollections will soon be forthcoming.   This is my recollections as spelled out in my book “Personal History of Lacey.”

Many important people have secrets, but John Gott, the superintendent of the North Thurston School District for 20 years,  was the biggest enigma I’ve ever encountered.  He was gregarious and out-going, loved parties and was well-respected by everyone, yet he held his secrets close to his body and seldom let anyone in.

I learned a few things about him and I suspect that he’s revealed his personal secrets to others in dibs and drabs.  He was a Missouri farm boy, but too intelligent to stay on the farm very long.  He was drafted during World War II and was sent to college to be trained as a doctor.  The war ended before he graduated and he couldn’t afford college on his own, so he burned all of his medical books in the college’s plaza and left.

He worked for Sears for a while collecting bad debts. Somehow, and I’m not certain just how, he managed to get a degree in civil engineering and somehow, I’m not certain just how, he ended up in New Mexico working in a capacity where he was in charge of funding for all of the New Mexico schools.

He was on his way to political office.  It was said he was next in line to run for governor of New Mexico.  Something happened.  John always said that he had a heart attack and when he recovered a career in politics had passed him by.   Others tell me that it was something different.  Whatever the reason he ended up at Washington State University pursuing his doctorate in education.

When the North Thurston School District was looking for a superintendent John Gott was their choice.  That’s when I first met him.

He relished his name – Gott.  Many people in the school district referred to him as the “Gott Father.”  Whatever his personal demons, and John wrestled with his personal demons all of the time, he was well-liked and well-respected.  And, he had the ability to see the future and adapt to trends not even on the horizon.

He foresaw the 24-hour work day and created a school to teach students 24-hours a day.  It was New Century, a high school which started in the late afternoon and ran into the evening.  John told me one time that he thought students who used New Century were students who had to work during the day, maybe by taking care of younger siblings.

He also understood that more than one-quarter of the high school student never graduated from high school, and so he started South Sound High School, designed to offer an alternative education.   Bear in mind that he was doing these projects in the 1980’s before most educators understood the need.

John also knew that not all students would go on to college, and invested district money in vocational programs.  During his time as superintendent, vocational education was a significant part of the district’s budget.   To that end, John wanted a high school devoted strictly to vocational education.

He worked with the adjacent school districts to form such a school program.  He wanted the school so badly that he even allowed it to go into the Tumwater School District, which would get the state funding and the bragging rights to vocational education.  The New Market Vocational Skills Center was formed.  And, while Tumwater officials reaped the public relations, the school was the brain-child of John Gott.

Over the years his programs have been shunted aside in the search for more money and accountability.   He asked me once, when he was in one of his blue moods, what he thought his legacy would be.  His programs were ruined and he thought that was his main contributions to the district.

I told him that those who he hired and trained would be his legacy.  Two of his protégés – – Dave Steele and Jim Koval – – have gone on to serve as superintendents of the North Thurston School District (now the North Thurston Public Schools.)

John liked to compete, whether it was  in poker or golf, or in the professional arena.  He also invested himself into the community through his involvement with business.

John was one of the founders of Lacey Bank (later Venture Bank and then First Community Bank) and served as the first Chairman of the Board.  His firm hand in the early years of the bank, made it a success.

When John retired, he disappeared, throwing away many friendships made through his work.  I heard about him one time.  He had taken over the job of superintendent of the Port Townsend school district  for a short period of time, and turned it around.  The Port Townsend newspaper said that the people of the school district would never know or understand the significance of John’s involvement.

I ran across him once, at SeaTac airport.  He had just come back from a fishing trip to Alaska.  The meeting was short and cordial but nothing more.

That’s just the way John liked it.

(Upon the death of his wife, Coeta, John Gott moved to Panorama.  At the time of this writing (2016) he still resides there.)

Finale – John Gott died April 1, 2018.  He was 94.