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School Board moves forward in superintendent search
By ALEXANDRA CALDWELL
Article published on Thursday, May 8, 2008 |
PINELLAS COUNTY - The Pinellas County School Board laid out desired traits and hired a contractor for the superintendent search at a workshop on May 6.
The board is expected to hire Wayne Blanton, executive director for the Florida School Boards Association, at a board meeting May 13. Blanton has assisted in 70 superintendent searches, and the School Board unanimously agreed to accept his services.
His fees are capped at $6,000, and he estimates total amount would be about $25,000, which is much less than the board thinks it would spend if it did a search on its own. The board will have to pay for advertising the position and for travel expenses to bring the top five candidates to Pinellas County.
Blanton guided the board through its desired qualities for a superintendent, how it will advertise for the position and a general timeline for the search.
“There is no decision that you’re going to make as a board member that’s more important than the decision you make choosing a superintendent,” Blanton said at the workshop. “You want someone who can work with you, you want someone who has respect for your community, you want someone who can work good with your teachers and your staff, and you want someone who’s going to be a part of this community. And you want someone who, hopefully, when this process is complete, who can be here for a while and establish a lengthy stability for your school system.”
Ideally, the board would like the new superintendent to start around Oct. 1.
The superintendent would begin with a three-year contract, but quality performance by the second year would determine if he or she qualified for the initial third year.
The board agreed a superintendent must have an earned master’s degree with an earned doctorate or equivalent preferred. It would also prefer a minimum of ten years successful administrative experience with at least five years in the district office.
Pinellas County schools have about 152,000 students, so the board prefers a superintendent to have worked in a district with at least 25,000 students.
Blanton said that in all 15,000 school districts nationwide, 80 percent of them have only 5,000 students or less.
The board easily agreed upon a short list of desired professional qualities, but the salary range brought resistance. This year, Wilcox makes $204,000 plus benefits. However, Blanton just helped Osceola County complete a superintendent search, and though there are only 52,000 students in that district, they pay their superintendent about $195,000. In order to be competitive for a district this size, Blanton said the board should advertise a salary range of $225,000 to $250,000.
“We’re in a budget crunch,” said Linda Lerner, School Board member.
Blanton said he understands but that the district also needs an excellent superintendent.
“There’s no sense going out for a search if we’re not going to be competitive,” said Jane Gallucci, another board member.
Ultimately the board agreed on a $200,000 to $240,000 salary plus benefits.
After the board votes on these agreements at the May 13 meeting, it will distribute brochures and place ads around the country.
In other news, board members agreed to raise deputy superintendent Julie Janssen’s salary from $131,000 to $185,000 when she takes the role of interim superintendent. She, too, will be subject to any pay cuts. By a tentative 4-3 consensus, the board believes Janssen should be able to apply for the permanent position, but the board will vote on this at the board meeting May 13.
A majority of the board also agreed to pursue building 27 townhouses on the Euclid School site in St. Petersburg. The homes would be available for purchase by Pinellas County school employees and would probably cost around $100,000. This would serve as an incentive for incoming teachers and staff since housing prices are high in Pinellas County and gas is too expensive to commute long distances, board members agreed.
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Article published on Thursday, May 8, 2008
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