Gresham-Barlow SD 10J board narrows 12 applicants to four for interviews

The Gresham-Barlow School District 10J board met in a special work session on Feb. 5, 2026, and narrowed a field of 12 applicants for a vacant board seat to four candidates to interview next Thursday.

The chair, opening the meeting, said the vacancy followed "David Logitech's resignation," noted the district had received 12 applications and outlined a plan to use an anonymized rubric to identify a 3–5 person interview pool. "We received 12 applications," the chair said, describing the board's goal to "narrow the field down to 3 to 5 folks that we can interview next Thursday." The board adopted a process in which staff randomized applicant names to letter codes so members would score anonymously.

Why it matters: the appointment fills a board seat ahead of the next election cycle and the board emphasized public transparency and fairness. The chair told applicants they would be directed to the Oregon Revised Statutes and board policy so they understand "the obligations by law and board policy" tied to the role, and reminded the panel that interviews and the subsequent discussion would be public.

Board members spent time individually scoring anonymized applications using the rubric. They then went around the table and shared top-three lists using the assigned letter codes; candidates labeled F and I appeared most frequently on members' lists. After comparing tallies the chair proposed — and the board accepted without objection — an interview pool of applicants labeled F, I, A and H.

The board set interview logistics: staff will schedule 20-minute interviews with 10-minute breaks between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. on the target day and will contact the selected candidates to confirm their availability. The chair said the board plans to provide the interview questions in advance — aiming for 24 hours — and asked that candidates not contact board members before their interviews. "We're telling them that they're not to contact other board members prior to that interview," the chair said, adding the intent is to keep the process equitable.

Board members also discussed how to aggregate scores (sum vs. average) so the selection pool reflected members' rankings rather than differing scoring scales. The chair noted a structured comparison approach (the Delphi technique) as a possible method to reduce bias and reach consensus during interviews.

No formal appointment was made at the session. The chair said the board expects to take action on an appointment at its March business meeting after interviews and public deliberation. Staff member Sarah will coordinate times and notify candidates of next steps.

Meeting action at a glance: the board approved the meeting agenda at the session start and later selected applicants labeled F, I, A and H for interviews; a final appointment is planned for the March business meeting.