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Okemos board sets superintendent search timeline; posting to close Feb. 6
Summary
The Okemos Board of Education approved a timeline for its superintendent search: the job profile will be posted Dec. 17 and the board set the application closing date for Friday, Feb. 6, with screening on Feb. 18 and first-round interviews Feb. 24–26; finalist visits are planned for mid‑March.
The Okemos Board of Education advanced the district's superintendent search on dec. 17, agreeing to widen outreach and to close the application window on Friday, Feb. 6. Facilitator Andy Ingalls of the Michigan Leadership Institute told trustees the posting will be updated Dec. 17 and that national postings (at organizations including the American Association of School Administrators and the National Alliance of Black School Educators) can be added for an additional $1,400 to broaden and diversify the candidate pool.
In a work-session discussion, Ingalls said 431 survey responses had been collected and proposed a timeline that trustees largely accepted. "I think we should stick with the February 6 as the closing date," Ingalls said while walking the board through options for screening and interview dates. Trustees agreed to hold a candidate-screening meeting on Feb. 18 and to schedule first-round interviews Feb. 24' 26; finalists would make on-site visits and participate in finalist interviews in mid-March, with specific days to be finalized depending on candidate availability and the number of applicants.
Trustees debated preferred superintendent start dates. The board did not mandate an exact start date but discussed language that would allow a range (for example, a start date between April 1 and July 1, with an earlier start possible by agreement). Board members emphasized not limiting the pool by over-specifying a start date. "Start date: July 1 and earlier start date after March 27 is possible," Ingalls said when describing draft language being considered for the posting.
The board also discussed application qualifications and the job profile language. Trustees asked that the posting emphasize proven school finance and bond implementation experience, given the district's ongoing $275 million bond program, and also asked the facilitator to group qualifications into clear buckets to improve readability. The board agreed to reconvene next week to finalize salary/contract language and other posting details.
Next procedural steps: the posting will be updated Dec. 17, focus-group and survey results will be provided to trustees for review, and trustees will revisit salary and contract language at the next scheduled meeting before the posting goes live.
