Minnewaska Area Schools board schedules first-round superintendent interviews for April 7

The Minnewaska Area Schools Board of Education on March 31 finalized its superintendent interview process and voted to offer first-round interviews to five candidates, with all interviews to be held on Tuesday, April 7, 2026. The motion to offer interviews passed on a roll call vote recorded in the minutes.

Board members reviewed and finalized the interview schedule, tour itinerary and the set of questions that board members will ask on behalf of the board, staff and student representatives; the board also assigned particular questions to individual members. Motion language in the minutes records that the board approved first-round interviews for "Candidates A, F, I, K, and M," and later released the candidates' names for public notice.

The board's public release identified the selected candidates, listed in no particular order, as Michael Pagel, current superintendent at Fulda Public School; Scott Lempka, current superintendent at Lac qui Parle Valley Schools; Jeff Wilson, superintendent of Underwood School District; Eric Koep, former superintendent of Bertha-Hewitt Public School; and Logan Swann, current superintendent at Buffalo Lake-Hector-Stewart Schools. The minutes note the candidates are identified "in no particular order" and that the public listing reflects data-privacy considerations.

The board also confirmed contingency steps: a tentative April 10, 2026 special meeting for second-round interviews if needed and an April 13, 2026 meeting to consider and approve a superintendent contract, contingent on mutual agreement between the selected candidate and the personnel committee. The meeting minutes record these dates as the board's schedule for moving the hire forward.