‘Be respectful and learn from each other...be responsible and we’ll all be successful’
Sutton Public Schools new superintendent Jason Cline believes in two core rules of life, one that he learned from a guidance counselor, whom he said he learned a lot from directly after graduating with his teaching degree at Kansas State University in 2002.
“Be respectful and learn from each other...be responsible and we’ll all be successful,” Cline shared.
“Those two core rules are the basis of my personal beliefs, and something that has always stuck with me after working in a Topeka, KS elementary school, teaching fifth grade.”
Cline, along with his wife of 22 years, Heather, and their children, Courtney, who will graduate from Kansas State University this coming spring, and Carson, who is a senior at Sutton High School, moved to Sutton nearly two months ago to take on the next stage of their lives, and so that Cline himself could ready himself, and work with the staff at Sutton Public Schools before the 2025-26 school year took off.
School started in Sutton last Wednesday, Aug. 13, but for Cline, his work started earlier with the Sutton administration, teaching staff, and support staff.
After day one with students last week, Cline called the opening day a big success. “The staff was charged and ready to go, the kids were very active, I’m sure they were ready to get back into a routine and be around their friends, so the first day I felt was a really good way to start off my first year in Sutton.”
His tenure with Sutton Public Schools, however, isn’t Cline’s first as an administrator or a superintendent. After teaching and coaching for seven years in the classroom, Cline became an assistant principal in Liberal, KS.
Cline and his wife, both hail from Atchison, KS, and are Kansas State graduates, after serving in Liberal, KS, the Cline’s moved to Schuyler, where he served as an assistant principal and the assistant athletic director.
The Clines then moved to Hays, KS, where Heather could finish up her masters degree; Jason served as an elementary principal in Wellington, KS, at the time.
Cline earned his superintendent certification at Wichita State and the rest is history, eventually leading the Cline family to Sutton.
“I first applied for the superintendent position at Hay Springs, thinking that I’d never get the position on my first-ever try for that type of position. I even told my wife that I’ll never get the position...it’s my first try,” Cline said.
But then reality hit Cline, and he got a call from Hay Springs, before he even returned from Hay Springs, that the district would like to hire him, Cline was a little stunned, but thrilled to get his first superintendent position.
“Hay Springs was a great experience for me and my family. We got to experience a different way of life, enjoy Northwest Nebraska and the Black Hills in South Dakota, and we met some really great people during our time there,” Cline said.
After a few years in Hay Springs, Cline next served as the superintendent in Horton KS, where the Cline’s daughter graduated from.
“We wanted to get back closer to our family for a while after a family health emergency came up, and again, my time at Horton was a good experience.”
Cline added, “Even though we haven’t been in Sutton that long, Sutton truly has a Horton feel to it. People are friendly and offer their help in any way for the school, and both communities have wonderful pride in their schools.”
In between his six to seven years in Horton, and his current role leading the Sutton school system, Cline served as the superintendent at Columbus Lakeview. As a family, the Cline’s were yearning to get back to small town life and when the opening for the superintendent position opened up in Sutton, “I jumped at the chance when I was offered the position, and it got my family closer to Kansas where our extended family is from, and closer to Courtney as she attends Kansas State, and after Carson graduates this year, we are certain that he will attend Kansas State.”
Cline shared that his family has felt welcomed in their short time in Sutton.
“I walked into as many businesses as I could to introduce myself to people. We enjoyed Dugout Days as a family and met so many great people who were very willing to visit with us, and genuinely wanted to get to know my family. My kids are very social, Courtney jumped right in and worked in the golf course clubhouse, and Carson helped some with the grounds crew at the course, and worked at the grocery store.”
Cline finalized by sharing, “This journey that my family has been on with me has been amazing, and to have the chance to lead a great school district like Sutton, and to work with the entire staff and the students, I’m just grateful to have been given this responsibility to work with the school and the community. I’m looking forward to the school year with my family, and our family at Sutton Public Schools.”
