The El Paso ISD Board of Trustees directed district administration to solicit qualifications and proposals from superintendent search firms and to report proposals and recommended vendors at a meeting in August 2025.

The board voted 5–0 to authorize procurement proceedings and asked procurement and district staff to use an open, public process that can include an RFP or RFQ depending on whether the board views the service as a professional legal service or a general consulting engagement. "The solicitation standard is either an RFP or an RFQ," procurement director Stephanie Ponce said, adding the procurement timeline is typically nine to 12 weeks from planning to contract execution.

Procurement staff described steps: planning and specification development (one to two weeks), advertisement (two weeks of public notice, typically El Paso County and the El Paso Times), a solicitation period (three to four weeks), evaluation and selection (weeks 7–8), and board agenda preparation and approval (week 9), followed by contract execution (weeks 10–12). Ponce said the process is collaborative and that procurement will coordinate with the board and with participating stakeholders on evaluation criteria.

Trustees emphasized the importance of community engagement and historical precedent. Trustee Leverage asked staff to reference past district searches and to ensure the public has meaningful opportunities to inform the search criteria and the RFP/RFQ language. The board discussed whether an August or July public meeting should be convened to finalize solicitation specifications; procurement staff advised that a two‑week window to finalize specifications is practicable, and a July public meeting would fit the nine‑ to twelve‑week solicitation timeframe for a contract in late summer.

The solicitation vehicle (RFQ vs. RFP) will depend on the written specifications. Procurement staff said that if the board considers the engagement a professional service under Texas Government Code §2254 (professional services procurement), an RFQ for qualifications is typically used; if competitive pricing is the primary driver, an RFP is used.

Trustees Leverage and Osterlund made and seconded the motion to direct administration to seek qualifications and proposals from reputable superintendent search firms and to report back with proposals at an August 2025 meeting. The motion passed unanimously. Procurement will prepare the solicitation and a draft timeline and return to the board with proposed specifications and advertisement language for public vetting; trustees asked staff to include community input mechanisms in the process and to consider historical practices and community lessons from prior searches.