Consultants outline superintendent search timeline and candidate profile; board sets preliminary dates

Tom Sullivan and Dr. Linda Paul, superintendent search consultants, presented a proposed search plan, timeline and candidate profile to the Deming Public Schools Board of Education at the April 17 meeting.

Consultants said they could post the vacancy quickly, run a four-week application window and deliver a candidate report to the board at the May 15 meeting. The consultants asked the board for input on minimum and preferred qualifications. Board members agreed on a set of baseline qualifications: a minimum of five years of teaching experience and five years of administrative experience demonstrating increasing responsibility; bilingual ability was listed as preferred but not required. The board also selected five priority candidate attributes from a consultant-provided list: integrity and values; instructional leadership; communication systems; school law; and superintendent–board relations/public relations.

The consultants proposed the following schedule (presented as draft and subject to board confirmation): post the position the week of April 21; close applications on May 16; notify the board of application pool status at the May 15 meeting; select finalists in a special meeting in late May (board discussed May 29 as a potential screening date); and hold finalist interviews in the week of June 9 or on a weekend in mid-June (board discussed June 14 as an interview date). Consultants said they would handle advertisement (AASA and other national outlets, plus statewide and free trade channels), application intake, initial screening, professional reference checks and coordination of a structured interview process. The consultants also said they will use a third-party vendor for criminal-history background checks and may seek legal guidance about credit checks for finalists.

Consultants asked the board to nominate staff and community advisory committee members (the plan proposed three staff and three community nominees per board member) and to have those nominees attend a short orientation before interview day. The consultants described orientations as required to ensure committee members understand legal limits on interview questions and evaluation procedures.

Board members discussed salary range guidance; staff said the district’s current superintendent salary range is reflected in materials (roughly $150,000–$169,000 as discussed in the meeting) and noted the state-mandated 4% staff increase that will affect baseline salaries. The consultants recommended listing that a multi-year contract “may be considered” in the advertisement; the board agreed to include that language.

Outcomes and next steps: The board and consultants agreed on minimum qualifications and a shortlist of desired attributes, asked staff to provide logo and strategic-plan materials for recruitment brochures, agreed on candidate-ad posting and application-close dates, and scheduled a special screening meeting and an interview window. The consultants will deliver an update to the board at the May 15 meeting summarizing applicant pool size and origin.