Past clients criticized APS’ search firm
Company’s failures in vetting led to failed searches, districts say
Albuquerque Public Schools’ Board of Education is eyeing education consulting firm Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates to help find a new superintendent. But that firm has come under fire in recent years for its vetting process.
At a finance meeting Monday, the APS board unanimously voted to move forward with HYA, which is based in Illinois.
According to district documents, the contract would be for one year and would cost an estimated $55,595 in operational funds.
The Board of Education will take a final vote on hiring the firm Wednesday.
After Superintendent Raquel Reedy announced she will retire in June, the board has been considering how to find her successor. The board has hosted public input forums and asked search firms to submit proposals.
An evaluation committee, made up of APS staffers and one community member, recommended HYA over the two other firms that applied.
Tanya Campos, a director in the Office of
Equity and Engagement and a member of the evaluation team, said HYA was the best firm to work in the large, urban school district with its “unique cultural perspective.”
But previous searches that HYA was involved with made headlines, including an incident in Minneapolis that left the school district switching gears after it had announced its superintendent pick. The district ended up launching another search.
Minneapolis Public Schools hired HYA to help with a 2015 superintendent search, according to district spokesman Dirk Tedmon.
Tedmon told the Journal in an email that the firm presented Sergio Paez, who was later selected to be superintendent.
But, according to past news releases, complaints came up “about the handling of special education students” in the school district Paez led at the time. Ultimately, the Minneapolis Public Schools board voted to terminate contract negotiations with Paez, Tedmon said.
He told the Journal that the board was “disappointed in the thoroughness of the vetting and surprised by the information that came forward.”
The district ended up using a different firm in its subsequent search.
The Journal also confirmed that Metro Nashville Public Schools had used HYA in a previous search for director of schools.
In a 2015 meeting, several board members voiced concerns about HYA.
Will Pinkston, a former Metro Nashville Public Schools board member, called the firm’s work “less than optimal” and said they “did not run a rigourous search.”
“We had problems with reference checks, and ultimately the successful candidate turned out to not be a viable candidate,” he said in that meeting.
Others said the firm didn’t present candidates that met the board’s “desired characteristics.”
Glenn “Max” McGee, president of the search firm, said he can’t speak about those incidents because they happened before he joined the company.
But he did speak about a more recent incident involving an ousted superintendent at Des Plaines School District 62 in Illinois whom HYA had recommended.
According to the Chicago Tribune, that superintendent was accused of sexual harassment and later resigned.
McGee said the search firm’s processes were reviewed and changes were made as a result to improve the vetting process.
He said the firm conducts about 60 searches annually and has a record of successful searches.
“We appreciate the opportunity of serving the Albuquerque Public Schools Board of Education as well as the APS students, staff, families, and greater community,” he said in an email.