Search may begin soon for next school leader
The search for Hamilton County’s next superintendent may begin Thursday, as the school board plans to finally select a search firm to help find the school system’s next leader.
The Hamilton County Board of Education met for two-and-a-half hours Tuesday night, and members discussed what characteristics they want to see in the next superintendent and the benefits of each of the three groups interviewed to help conduct the search.
Since March, Kirk Kelly has been the district’s interim superintendent, and several board members have voiced support for his leadership, but the majority of the board still appears set on conducting a search.
“We’ve all said this, we want the best leader,” school board member Joe Wingate said during the meeting.
The board’s attorney, Scott Bennett, facilitated Tuesday night’s discussion, and asked the board if the next leader must have experience in education.
School board member Tiffanie Robinson and Wingate said they wanted to choose between a variety of candidates, and board members Rhonda Thurman and Greg Martin said having a background in education is not important to them.
Other members of the board, Steve Highlander, David Testerman, Kathy Lennon and Joe Galloway, leaned toward hiring a leader who has been involved in education.
School board member Karitsa Mosley Jones said what matters to her is that the next leader can execute change “in a highly complex, politically charged and often contentious system.”
As the conversation came to a close, Bennett concluded that most of the board members desired to hire someone with experience in education, but that it is not a vital qualification. Bennett then directed the board to discuss selecting a group to help with the search.
Last month the board interviewed the nonprofit Tennessee School Boards Association and firms McPherson & Jacobson LLC and Coleman Lew and Associates Inc.
Board members said a benefit of the school boards association is that it’s cheap, understands local politics and knows educators across the state. But several board members voiced concerns about it not actively recruiting top candidates.
McPherson & Jacobson LLC was attractive to some members because of its experience in national superintendent searches and the high retention rate of the leaders it’s placed, but Robinson and Wingate said they were concerned that the firm would find only former educators to fill the position.
Several board members voiced praise of Coleman Lew and Associates Inc.’s proactive approach to recruiting and targeting of non-traditional candidates, but Highlander said he is hesitant about the group since it has only helped conduct six superintendent searches.