Superintendent search timeline announced for Valley Stream high schools

Though the Valley Stream Central High School District’s new interim superintendent, Dr. Richard Marsh, started work on Monday, the Board of Education is taking the next steps to find a permanent superintendent for the 2011-12 school year.

In a planning meeting on Dec. 20, board members met with consultants from School Leadership LLC, the search firm appointed by the board to find a new superintendent. According to board President Kenneth Cummings, consultants, including the firm’s president, Dr. Charles Fowler, listened as board members spoke about three important matters they want considered in the search for a superintendent: what would attract a superintendent to Valley Stream, what qualities that person must have, and what strengths the candidate should have to benefit the district.

The board also announced that on Jan. 24 and 26 the firm will meet with district staff and students. A third meeting is scheduled for Jan. 27, when community members will meet with the firm’s consultants. The meetings will take place in the evening at district offices, and the times will be announced soon.

“The firm plans to talk to the staff and community and take into consideration what they say,” Cummings said. “All information will be combined and provided back to the board. We will then set a profile for what we want in the next superintendent.”

He added that the board plans to adopt specifications for the superintendent at a February meeting. The firm hopes to start bringing in candidates to meet with the Board of Education by March 16, Cummings said. A decision will then be made about which candidates will continue on to a first round of interviews with the board on March 25 and 26. Final interviews are slated for April 5 and 6, according to Cummings, with the board hoping to make an appointment by mid-April.

The search’s progress will be reported on the district’s website. “We want people to be tuned in and have information,” Cummings said, “so if they want to be part of it, they can, and if they do not want to, they know what is going on.”

The firm has posted the position on the On-line Application System for Educators at www.olasjobs.org. In addition, there is an online survey available for anyone in the community to complete about what specific skills and qualities they want in a superintendent.

According to Fowler, the firm will complete several important tasks in the search including networking and recruitment activities to find candidates, screening online applications against approved specifications, meeting with the board to present its findings and recommendations, and helping the board to establish interview protocols.

Once a superintendent is found, the board hopes he or she can start work on July 1. The new superintendent would be required to sign a three-year contract.