Board schedules special meetings to narrow superintendent candidates; MSBA to assist search

The Albert Lea Public School District School Board outlined a timeline to advance its superintendent search and said the Minnesota School Boards Association (MSBA) is assisting the process.

Chair Platt told the board there will be a special meeting “tomorrow at 5 p.m.” to name the finalist(s) from the applicant pool; the board will then hold a special meeting on March 26 at 9 a.m. for first‑round interviews, with each candidate allotted about one hour. The board plans a second round of interviews on Monday, March 31 at 4 p.m., followed by a short break and a closed discussion about hiring a successor, the chair said.

The chair said the board expects MSBA to provide recommendations and that interview questions will be standardized across candidates. The chair described a planned narrowing of the field — MSBA may advise the board to reduce the candidate pool after the special meeting — and said members have completed application reviews in advance. The board indicated that the process will include public study sessions and a regular meeting where the revised budget is likely to be discussed in April.

No hiring decision was announced at the meeting; the board will follow the scheduled special meetings for further action.