After accepting the resignation of three activities directors in four years, Lakeville North High School hopes it has found a long-term answer in a familiar face. Mike Zweber will take over as activities director on July 1, pending school board approval.
Zweber, the former Lakeville North football coach and DECA adviser, will replace Brett Carlson, who announced his resignation in February.
Carlson resigned because it was not “the right fit.” Lakeville North Principal Marne Berkvam added that the job may have been too big for Carlson, who came from a smaller district at North Branch.
Carlson’s predecessor, Russ Reetz, left Lakeville North after a two-year tenure, accepting the same job at Prior Lake High School, which is in the district where his wife teaches and his kids attend school.
Before Reetz took over, Bob Ertl resigned in 2013 for personal reasons, which included spending more time with his family and returning to the classroom.
In the Lakeville North activities director position, the only consistency has been inconsistency. But that doesn’t deter Zweber, a lifelong Lakeville resident with the exception of three years at the Doulos Discovery School in the Dominican Republic.
“People might look at that and say it is a result of some programs that are struggling,” Zweber said. “The most encouraging thing about the programs at Lakeville North, not only are they not struggling, they are actually some of the most elite programs in the state of Minnesota.”
Zweber, who plans to be at Lakeville North long term, will inherit an activities program that includes football and girls soccer and boys basketball programs that have made five consecutive state trips.
Berkvam is confident Zweber’s Panthers background will help build on that success. “I think the community is going to be excited to have that loyalty, someone who is passionate for Lakeville North and a Panther through and through,” she said.