Thursday marks the first day on the job for new Elk City Superintendent Mike Sparks. Sparks, who spoke recently to the Elk City Rotary Club, is entering his 28 th year in education with this upcoming school year being his 6 th as a superintendent. His background included teaching and coaching, but says when approached about an administration role at Anadarko High School, he accepted the challenge. Sparks says when he took on that job, the school was rated as an “F” by the State Department of Education’s report card system. He said during his time as principal, he – along with fellow educators in the school – was able to elevate the school’s grade to a “B”, and help students obtain much needed scholarships.