Munster board approves BWP to lead superintendent search

The School Town of Munster Board of School Trustees voted 4-0 at a special meeting to hire BWP to lead the district's search for a new superintendent, approving the firm's letter of understanding.

The vote follows weeks of expedited outreach to three search firms after Superintendent Dr. Heller announced his resignation. The board said it will reuse a leadership profile and community survey done three years ago to speed the process and may pursue an interim superintendent if a permanent hire cannot begin immediately.

Kristen Smith, chair of the superintendent search, told the board that the panel contacted three firms and concluded BWP best met the district's needs for cost, speed and familiarity with the district's recent work. "We agreed we needed to move forward with a superintendent search via hiring a third party to assist us with that search," Smith said. She noted the board wants to reuse prior survey and leadership-profile materials rather than redoing that community work from scratch.

Board members discussed three time windows for a hire: as soon as possible before Dr. Heller leaves, by the start of the school year, or by Christmas. The board also directed that an interim search run concurrently in case the permanent candidate cannot assume duties immediately. Members raised concerns about the state funding environment, citing "legislation recently passed" that Smith said could reduce incoming district funds by up to $3,000,000, a factor in recruitment and compensation considerations.

The board reviewed proposals from BWP (the firm used for the district's prior superintendent search three years ago), HYA/Hazard (an Illinois-based firm the board said has national reach), and UniversitySearch (which the board noted conducts in-state searches and would charge travel expenses only). One board member flagged the roughly $30,000 price quoted for a six-week national search as a potential concern; the board said BWP offered a discounted approach that would allow reuse of prior materials and flexibility on start dates.

A motion to "approve hiring BWP as our executive search firm and approve their LOU as presented" was made and seconded; the motion carried 4-0. The meeting record shows four trustees present and one trustee, Amy Sinder, absent. The board said BWP will interview individual trustees who were not part of the previous search to gather any additional input.

Board members thanked staff for rapid coordination during the expedited schedule and noted the board's intent to be deliberate: if the right permanent candidate is available, the board said it will move quickly; otherwise it will place an interim superintendent in the role while the search continues.

The board announced its next regular meeting is scheduled for June 9 at 6:00 p.m.