Monroe County board outlines public, multi‑stage superintendent search and asks community for input

Andrea Messina of the Florida School Boards Association, with Dr. Deborah Pace and Mike Godrow, told the Monroe County School Board on Dec. 10 that the district’s superintendent search will be conducted in a transparent, multi-stage process with community input, public materials on a search portal and on-site finalist interviews in late April.

Messina said the search portal, to be hosted on the Monroe County School Board website and linked from individual school pages, will carry the timeline, survey and forum results, applicant lists, semifinalist videos and questionnaires, livestream links for public board interviews and dates and locations for community input forums. “We will make sure we get them to you,” she said, describing the portal as a “one-stop shop” where residents can track the search’s progress.

Why it matters: Board members emphasized the district’s geography — lower, middle and upper Keys — and asked that outreach and in-person forums be spread across the three areas so all communities can participate. The plan calls for a public survey in February (proposed Feb. 3–28), consolidation of that input at a Feb. 25 board meeting, advertising in March, semifinalist review in April and finalist on-site interviews the week of April 28, with a possible May 6 board meeting to select a new superintendent.

Board direction and edits: Messina asked the board to help finalize a 10-statement prioritization package that mirrors the district strategic plan. Members debated precise wording: on one survey statement they asked that “create technology-enhanced learning environments” be revised to “support technology-enhanced learning environments”; Messina agreed to the change. The board also favored adding statements that address equitable resource allocation and collaboration with stakeholders.

Logistics and equity: Board members discussed interview logistics for finalists — public full-board interviews that would be televised, followed by private one-on-one interviews — and whether the full board needs to attend every evening meet-and-greet. Members suggested rotating attendance at evening events while committing full participation for daytime public interviews so the process balances access and board capacity.

Job description and compensation schedule: Messina asked the board to review the draft position description and offered to propose suggested edits in January, including making required state certification language more flexible (changing “required” to “eligible”) to broaden the applicant pool. She identified Feb. 25 as the date by which salary range and contract-length decisions should be made so the position can be advertised.

Next steps: FSBA will upload the finalized survey questions and launch the portal (with QR codes and links) during the holiday period for testing, firm up forum dates and locations in cooperation with staff, and return in January with a more detailed interview schedule and proposed focus-group calendar. The board was asked to block the week of April 28 on their calendars for finalist interviews.