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Board approves consultant, sets timeline and application for superintendent search
Summary
The Chapel Hill–Carrboro board approved a contract with the North Carolina School Boards Association to run the superintendent search, set an April 14 application deadline and approved the vacancy announcement and application as amended. The board also directed staff to finalize survey questions and outreach plans.
The Chapel Hill–Carrboro City Schools Board of Education on March 6 approved a consulting agreement with the North Carolina School Boards Association to run its superintendent search and set the application deadline as April 14. The vote followed a presentation from Sam Thorpe of the association and a lengthy board discussion on the vacancy announcement, advertising and community and staff surveys.
Sam Thorpe told the board the only date that must be fixed on the platform is the application deadline and recommended about five weeks of advertising. "The only date I need your vote on is the application deadline, which I have set just over 5 weeks from tomorrow," Thorpe said during his presentation. He also confirmed the board would receive redacted PDFs of open‑ended survey comments.
Board members debated several practical edits to the vacancy announcement, including whether the selected candidate should be required to live within the district or broadly within Orange County. Thorpe said the advertisement should reflect state law but could state the board's preference: "We can obviously expand it to Orange County," he said, and noted applicants generally "know what the law is in terms of living within the county."
After discussing paid advertising options, the board agreed to stick with the free channels listed in the consultant's materials. The board also approved edits to application questions, asking staff to add short essay items on absenteeism, instructional and curricular leadership, use and assessment of instructional technology, and work with diverse populations.
The board approved the consulting agreement and then voted to set the application deadline as April 14. The board also approved the vacancy announcement and the application as amended and directed staff to finalize the survey wording and outreach plan for community groups, staff and other stakeholders.
Practical next steps: the consultant will provide a finalized vacancy announcement and application link by email; the district will work with volunteer translators for survey languages; and the board plans a special‑call meeting to review applicant materials after the deadline.
The board made the approvals by voice vote; no roll‑call tallies were recorded in the meeting transcript. The motion to approve the consulting agreement was moved and seconded and carried, and separate motions to approve the posting, application and application deadline passed similarly.
