At the Aug. 28 Committee of the Whole, the North Platte Public Schools board discussed revising the superintendent-evaluation process to better align annual reviews with the district's five-year strategic plan.

Board members said they would like the evaluation rubric to reflect the district's strategic priorities so that the superintendent's goals and performance feedback are directly tied to the plan. The board heard three options presented: continue using the standard NASB evaluation, customize NASB's tool through a one-time $600 development fee (with a lower annual renewal), or adopt the KSB (district legal counsel) annual evaluation tool, which was described as shorter and simpler but carries a higher annual fee ($1,300'$1,500 range was cited).

"When we're implementing a strategic plan, our evaluation process should align with that strategic plan," Superintendent Dr. Rhodes told trustees. He said NASB's existing system allows for superintendent self-evaluation and an aggregated board report and that NASB indicated the rubric can be customized. "Anything that you put in place for goals or expectations has to be aligned to the vision of the district," Dr. Rhodes said.

Trustees discussed specific features they liked and disliked in each option: NASB offers a four-point scale (which some trustees said forces clearer judgments than an odd-numbered scale), pre-populated comment text tied to rating levels, and an existing process for anonymous aggregation. KSB's product was described as more concise and including a place for artifacts tied to evaluation domains; one trustee said the pre-generated comments could be helpful for board members unsure how to phrase feedback. Some trustees recommended involving Dr. Rhodes and a small board working group in any customization work.

Board members asked staff to gather more detail on what NASB customization would actually look like, the expected one-time and recurring costs, and whether artifacts and other features could be included. NASB and KSB were discussed as both already being accepted by the Nebraska Department of Education for filing, which matters for any formal evaluation instrument the board adopts.

The board did not adopt a new evaluation tool at this meeting and directed staff to return with additional options and cost comparisons.