Members of the community got the chance to voice their opinions on the Columbus Municipal School District”s next superintendent Tuesday night, with nearly four dozen people showing up at the Brandon Central Services office to present a wish list of sorts.
The meeting, led by Mississippi School Boards Association consultant Dr. Harold Fisher, was contentious at moments, with some people questioning the CMSD board of trustees” decision to hire an outside firm to assist in the search and others questioning the process itself.
MSBA was contracted by CMSD in July at a cost of $9,500. Under their contract, they will solicit public feedback on the desirable traits of a superintendent, then draw up a brochure listing those traits and begin a six-week process of advertising in national publications, sending letters to recommended applicants, accepting applications and presenting all applications to the board.
The CMSD board of trustees will make the final decision on which candidates to interview and which final candidate to hire.
“They”re not going to do anything under the table,” Fisher told the crowd, stressing that MSBA only presents the candidates and tells board members whether or not they meet the parameters the board has set. MSBA does not screen applicants or make recommendations.
Fisher conducted three meetings Tuesday: One with city schools administrators, one with certified personnel and the final one with parents and members of the community. In each session, he asked the same question: What character traits would you like to see in the next superintendent?
Responses varied, with many community members calling for a leader who is fiscally responsible, financially savvy, visionary, innovative, student-oriented and open with the public.
Chuck Yarborough, a teacher at Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science and the parent of children at Cook Elementary School, Columbus Middle School and Columbus High School, said he appreciated having the chance to offer his input on CMSD”s next leader.
“We need a visionary leader who continues to build on the excellence that”s been infused into our school district the last four to five years,” he said after the meeting.
Learnard Dickerson, who has a child at Stokes-Beard Elementary School, was one of many who called for fiscal savviness, along with loyalty and commitment, but he said he had some concerns about the overall selection process.
“It”s fair in terms of (being) open, but I don”t know if everybody walked away feeling concrete about the process moving forward,” Dickerson said.
Fisher said the comments from Tuesday”s meetings will be compiled into a report which will then be presented to the CMSD board of trustees. The board will then compile their list of desired character traits from those reports and open the application process.
People who would like to apply for the position or follow the process can visit msbaonline.org.
A deadline has not yet been set for hiring a new superintendent. In addition to searching for a new superintendent in Columbus, the firm is also conducting searches for the Starkville, Tupelo and Oxford school districts.
Carmen K. Sisson is the former news editor at The Dispatch.
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