| USD 416 superintendent search underway |
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| News - Louisburg | |||
| Written by Doug Carder | |||
| Friday, 20 March 2009 08:00 | |||
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Louisburg USD 416 has officially begun its search for a new superintendent. The Board of Education voted 7-0 at a special meeting Wednesday morning to hire Bill Majors, assistant executive director of the Kansas Association of School Boards, to help the district conduct the search for Superintendent Rick Doll’s successor. Doll is leaving to take over as the new superintendent of the Lawrence school system. His last day with the Louisburg district will be May 31. Majors told the board Wednesday he would post the opening that day. KASB will accept applications through April 15. The board tentatively is looking at the week of April 20-24 to conduct interviews, with the goal of naming Doll’s successor by May 1. “I understand the sense of urgency with filling this position,” Majors told the board. Majors, who is very familiar with the Louisburg district, cautioned the board the pool of applicants may not be as deep as when he conducted the search in 2005 that led to Doll’s hiring. At that time, the board interviewed four candidates before selecting Doll. “I know a (Class) 5A district in northwest Kansas looking for a superintendent that only received five applications — total,” Majors said. “Another 5A district in central Kansas only had 10 applicants, and two were in-house. I think we’re seeing fewer applicants because people who have jobs are holding onto them right now because of all the (economic) uncertainty.” Nevertheless, Majors said the Louisburg superintendent’s position is likely to field more applicants because of its proximity to the Kansas City metro area and because of the Louisburg school district’s good reputation. “You have a lot to sell here in Louisburg,” said Majors, who travels to districts all over the state. “This is probably the best opening so far this year, and I think you’ll see some good applicants.” Majors requested the board hold a special meeting April 16 to review the list of applicants. At that time, Majors and KASB field service specialist Max Heim will recommend who they think are the top-tier candidates as they help the board narrow the field to a group of finalists to be interviewed. In the meantime, Majors said he will stay in regular contact with Board President Jimmy Allen as the search progresses. The board agreed to pay KASB $4,000 to conduct the search. Board members said they were pleased with the work Majors and KASB did for them last time.
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