The state reorganization of the Metro Schools’ administrative office will impact the district’s ability to recruit a new superintendent, and Metro Council members have expressed concern that the issue should have been taken care of already.
Several council members and state legislators met yesterday with a representative of the firm charged with helping the school board select a new superintendent after Pedro Garcia resigned in January.
Councilman Jerry Maynard says board needs to provide better leadership, since the search process will take months.
“There is a shortage of qualified superintendents throughout the nation. There are 2,000 openings and there are only a handful of superintendents who are at the level to bring Davidson County schools up to excellence, so they should have started the process earlier. And I’m a little disappointed that they’re going to wait until the next school board is elected before they begin the process.”
The school board is prevented from hiring anyone this summer while 5 of its nine seats are up for election.
The state and local elected representatives have no direct influence over the selection process, but they did tell the search firm yesterday what qualities they’d like to see in a director.
In addition to having the experience needed to move a district out of corrective action status, many say the next superintendent also needs to have the ability to bring all interest groups to the table.
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