Two Bend-La Pine School District schools officially got their newest leaders Tuesday when the district’s board approved them for the job at a special meeting.

Gayle Vidal, a principal in Montana, will become the principal of Three Rivers, a kindergarten-through-eighth-grade school in Sunriver.

Gary Timms, a principal in Baker City, will take on the job as principal of Lava Ridge Elementary in Bend.

They will respectively replace Connie Rodda, the Three Rivers principal, and Tom Hayes, principal at Lava Ridge, who are retiring.

Both Vidal and Timms said they were drawn to their new jobs by the educational opportunities, but also by the region.

”I have watched that school grow from the time it was small,” said Vidal, 56, who built a home in Sunriver in 1989.

After holding the position of principal at Cornelius Hedges School in Kalispell, Mont., for 15 years, she said, it was time for a new challenge.

She has also served as an administrator in the district, working on curriculum and a gifted and talented program.

Vidal said she was happy to live closer to her mother in California by moving to Central Oregon. The Montana principal currently makes about $66,000, not including benefits. Her new salary is not yet set.

Jim Widsteen, the district’s executive director for human resources, said the salaries of the incoming principals would probably range between about $70,000 and $79,000 – not including benefits.

He praised both choices at the school board meeting Wednesday.

Vidal has ”incredible energy,” Widsteen said. ”She is, I believe, a perfect match.”

As for Timms, the incoming Lava Ridge principal, Widsteen said he was an ”excellent choice” for the school.

Timms, 37, is currently principal of Brooklyn Elementary School in Baker City, a job he’s held since 2000. He also serves as principal of Haines School, a rural K-6 school.

”An opportunity to work in a district like Bend-La Pine doesn’t come along very often,” he said, when asked why he wanted the job.

”It has an excellent reputation. It’s a growing district,” Timms said. His current salary is about $68,000, not including benefits.

The district chose the new principals from a pool of 58 applicants. Vidal and Timms will start their jobs this summer.

Julia Lyon can be reached at 541-617-7831 or at jlyon@bendbulletin.com.