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Brainerd board votes 5–1 to keep first-round superintendent interview questions private

Brainerd Public School District Board · January 27, 2026
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Summary

At a special meeting the Brainerd Public School District board voted 5–1 to keep all first-round superintendent interview questions private, citing candidate privacy and concerns about advantaging applicants who could view or rehearse questions in advance.

The Brainerd Public School District board voted to keep all first-round superintendent interview questions private, passing a motion 5–1 during a special meeting.

MSBA consultant Barb Dorn advised the board that applicant names and related materials are private under the Government Data Practices Act, and recommended limiting question exposure to protect candidates. "The names of your applicants are private data," Dorn said, urging the board to avoid reading questions aloud so candidates would not gain an advantage.

Board members debated whether publishing questions would level the playing field or allow rehearsed or AI-assisted answers. Director Sarah Spear said she was concerned about overly rehearsed answers but also supported a measured approach; after discussion she moved to keep all round-1 questions private. The motion was seconded by another board member and passed on a roll-call vote: DJ Donnelinger Yes; Stephanie Ederman Yes; Randy Heidman No; Sarah Spear Yes; John Ward Yes; Michelle Brecken Yes.

MSBA and board members discussed a compromise approach for later rounds: providing a small number of district-specific questions in advance while keeping some questions private so finalists must show extemporaneous thinking. The board also agreed that recordings of those who advance to round 2 would be posted on the district website, but the round-1 interviews would not be live streamed; access would be handled via invite-only YouTube links on request.

The decision finalizes the board’s approach for round 1 of the search and leaves room to determine which round-2 questions, if any, should be public. The board directed staff and MSBA to finalize the list of round-1 questions by number and proceed with the interview schedule.