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Friday, September 17, 1999
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal
Search firm advised of wish list for next superintendent
Several qualities requested at public forum
By Lisa Kim Bach
Review-Journal
Clark County School District's next superintendent won't have to leap tall buildings in a single bound.
But he or she will need to be a leader of the people, have a good business head, lower the high school dropout rate, believe in accountability, work for education equity, and possess the ability to interact effectively with all the ethnic groups that make up the eighth-largest school district in the nation.
At least that's the wish list put together Thursday night at one public forum, conducted by the Illinois-based search firm of Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates. The firm was hired by the School Board to identify potential replacements for retiring Superintendent Brian Cram.
"Let's do it right," said Rosalie Boulware, one of the 22 people gathered at Von Tobel Middle School for the forum. "My reason for being here more than anything else is that 10 years ago, they didn't do a national search when the district needed a new superintendent. I applaud them for doing it now."
Search firm consultants have been in the district for three days, gathering comments from numerous sources, including politicians, educators, parents, board members, and even Cram, who plans to retire in July. Additional polling also was done at schools and on the Internet. The end result will be made public Sept. 28, when the search firm reveals what qualities are valued most by district residents. School Board members aim to hire someone in December.
"Where would you suggest we look for that person?" consultant Dave Willard asked, after the audience at Von Tobel had its say.
Not a lot of suggestions were forthcoming on where. But Willard was bombarded with a long list of things people didn't want.
Carlos Ramirez, a grandparent in the district, rejected the idea of a nontraditional candidate with a military background, one of many possibilities discussed by the special panel appointed by School Board members to assist with the search.
"We're not at war with the students," Ramirez said. "We're not at war with the parents. We need people who are flexible and willing to work with the community."
Rancho High School sophomore Mariana Kihuen told Willard to avoid candidates who will focus more on politics than education. Her advice -- get a person dedicated to reducing the dropout rate.
"We must commit ourselves to one overriding goal," Kihuen said, "making sure that students graduate with a diploma and not with a useless certificate of attendance."
Germaine James, mother of a Mendoza Elementary School student, cautioned the firm to be especially careful in its screening of candidates -- whoever gets local education's top job is someone she's going to have to live with for a long time.
"We have a lot of programs," James said. "A lot of failing programs. We need someone who can come in, see the problems facing the community and kids, and get things working again."
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Printable version of this story
Dave Willard, right, a consultant with the search firm of Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, speaks with a small group of district residents Thursday at Von Tobel Middle School. The audience later grew to 22 people. Public forums such as this one, aimed at gathering input on the qualities needed in Clark County School District's next superintendent, have drawn sparse crowds this week.
Photo by Craig L. Moran.
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