Cashion’s board of education has tabbed the person to lead the district through its next phase.

Board members voted unanimously on Monday to hire current Tahlequah Public Schools Superintendent Leon Ashlock to succeed Sammy Jackson.

Jackson, the district’s superintendent since 2014, announced his pending retirement to the board late last year.

Ashlock will take over July 1.

“We had a lot of good applicants and it was a tough decision,” said Michelle Miller, president of Cashion’s board of education. She noted 26 applications were submitted for the position.

“We’re fortunate to be in the position we are in right now.”

Although Ashlock is currently overseeing a district with more than 3,000 students and 500 employees, his roots are in small schools.

He graduated from Graham High School and had 11 classmates.

His teaching and coaching background saw him make stops at the likes of Schulter and Butner.

Ashlock got into administration during a seven-year stint at Keys.

On top of being a basketball coach, he also became a principal and athletic director.

He was named superintendent at Nowata and served there from 2015-18 before accepting the same position at Tahlequah.

“My ambition was always to go bigger, bigger, bigger,” Ashlock said. “I love it at Tahlequah, but it’s a little different than a smaller school as far as having that daily interaction with teachers and students.

“I have that, but it’s at a different scale here,” he continued. “If I wanted to walk down every hallway in this district, it would take all day long.”

Ashlock’s youngest son is set to graduate this year from Tahlequah High School.

“That presented the opportunity to look for a new adventure,” he said. “And it was in my mind that if I looked to move, it would be in a smaller district and smaller town.”

Ashlock’s wife, Michel, has family in the Oklahoma City area, which opened up this part of the state in Ashlock’s search.

Then Cashion’s position opened up.

“I did some investigating,” Ashlock said. “And I became very interested the more I read about it.”

Ashlock, 44, spoke with Jackson as well as others knowledgeable about Cashion.

Eventually he met and interviewed with the board.

“They were a great group and it piqued my interest even more,” Ashlock said.

“It seemed to be a great fit.”

Miller agreed. While Cashion is still a small school, it’s growing.

The district began the year with 719 students, up 95 from the previous year.

The same amount of growth is projected into next year.

“He’s got superintendent experience at both a big school and a smaller school,” Miller said. “We’re experiencing growth. He’s got experience with that as well as bond issues, which we’ll need to look at as we continue to grow.”

Miller said Ashlock is expected to make appearances at Cashion over the next few months to meet staff and attend board meetings before he officially begins his post.

He’ll be taking over for someone who won’t be easy to follow, she said.

“Everybody hates to lose Sammy,” she said. “He leaves such big shoes to fill.

“The kids, the teachers, the parents, the board all love him. He’s done a lot of great things and the school is in great shape. He’s leaving it better than he found it.”

Ashlock said he wants to carry that on.

“I think my background will provide a good base to be prepared for that,” he said. “I think I’m a good fit to help bridge that gap from where they are now to where they’ll be in the next five to 10 to 15 years.”