Search consultant outlines superintendent search timeline; board agrees to salary range and targeted job postings

Jay Bennett, the board’s contracted search consultant, walked trustees through a 14‑week search schedule at the Feb. 11 meeting, describing steps from stakeholder input to candidate interviews and final negotiations.

Bennett said the process will include district‑led postings and an online survey for community input, multiple in‑district stakeholder sessions (including a requested student session at Saline High School), an April review of candidate materials, first‑round interviews and a second‑round finalist stage. He emphasized that most applicants wait to submit until the selection criteria are attached to the posting and that many applications arrive “the weekend before” a posting closes.

The board discussed background‑check procedures. Bennett said he will run background and social‑media checks for the finalists and will notify the board if “something pops” in a check. He also said the full background report for the person the board hires will be placed in that person’s personnel file; other background files will not be released to the board unless the results raise concerns. Board members pressed for clarity about how allegations or settlements (noncriminal matters) would be surfaced; Bennett said he would vet and report substantiated, relevant findings to the board.

The board agreed by consensus to a preliminary posting salary range of $175,000–$195,000 and to additional paid postings on targeted job boards that reach educators of color in addition to the state education job site and the Revelus applicant platform. Bennett said he would post the position and deliver the written survey to the board president for distribution; he will schedule stakeholder meetings and a March 11 workshop to finalize selection criteria.

Bennett outlined interview logistics, including public input forms during interviews, an open‑house format for finalists, and the district’s option to send visiting board members to finalist districts; he cautioned that off‑site visits sometimes yield uneven or anecdotal information. He recommended keeping most deliberations and interviews in open session, with closed sessions limited to discussion of internal candidates or behavioral testing results.

The board requested that survey materials and any open‑ended community feedback be available in Spanish; Bennett said he would arrange translation and add Spanish to the survey distribution. He also agreed to meet with student groups during his district visits and to circulate a draft survey and posting to board leadership for quick review.

Timeline highlights Bennett presented included stakeholder sessions in mid/late February (two provisional dates the ISD will finalize), a board workshop on March 11 to refine selection criteria, access to applications for trustees on April 18, a candidate review/selection workshop April 22, first‑round interviews April 29–30 and second‑round finalist interviews and community open houses in early May.