NRHEG was one of eight such searches being facilitated by SCSC as of April 4.
Board member John Harrington expressed he was “pleased” by the quality of the candidates turned up by SCSC despite the large number of other openings available.
Semifinalists
One of the semifinalists, Gregory Schmidt, currently superintendent at Maynard-Clara City-Raymond, withdrew from the selection in order to be interviewed for superintendent at Minnewaska Area School District in Glenwood, Minn. Wellen was also being interviewed for this position.
Replacing Schmidt in the line-up was Jason Vold, currently Charter School Director for New Century Academy School in Hutchinson, Minn.
Vold, Dr. Dennis Goodwin, Dr. Kathleen Mortensen, and Tami Martin were each interviewed separately by the NRHEG school board and the community group, in concurrent meetings. The interviews, of about an hour each, lasted from 4:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. After the interviews were concluded, questionnaires and evaluation sheets from the Community Group were collated and considered by the board along with their own evaluations, for discussion and a decision on which two to select as finalists for April 25.
Feedback forms had been distributed to board members, community members, students, teachers, administrators and staff asking for lists of: strengths of the district, biggest challenges facing the district, what needs to be done, and desired skills and abilities. From the results of these forms, SCSC compiled a profile of the NRHEG district, and of the attributes desired in a new superintendent. This was given to potential candidates.
Board members, Community Group members, and SCSC consultants collaborated on producing the questions to be asked, based on the compiled list of attributes.
The school board interviewed one candidate in the Media Center while the Community Group interviewed another in another room, then the candidates switched. Following are some highlights from the board interviews.
Interviews with board
Jason Vold was the youngest candidate, with four years as Charter Director of New Century Academy School, Hutchinson. Vold said he believes professional development is the core of education, believes it is important to inspire people, and to hire the right people. He sees himself as a visionary, seeking a clear vision of what the next 10 years of education will be like, and how a school can be successful. For strategic initiatives, he championed “recognition” as the key to a school’s continued survival.
Dr. Kathleen Mortensen, currently at Brooklyn Center, combines 13 years of administrative experience with nine years as special education teacher/coordinator. She has worked with schools and with the Minnesota Department of Corrections, and described situations of turning resource poor situations into successful educational environments by motivating teachers. She believes supporting teachers to be most important. “All get excited if you give them the support they need,” she said. She also spoke at length about partnering with other organizations as an alternative method of expanding education and facilities.
Dr. Dennis Goodwin, with Platte-Geddes School District, So. Dak., brings 20 years of private-sector business management to the table. He believes in a strategic plan as a living document. “You don’t have 27 goals,” he said. “Pick a few goals and then stick to them and track them regularly.” Goodwin prefers to work in a rural district. “The beauty of a small district,” he said, “is that it’s really easy to have an open door.” He is a champion of the Integrated Model and non-classroom teaching. “Where kids have the personal touch, they respond better.” His hiring strategy: “First is passion.” Then he puts the candidate in a classroom, to see how they are with the students. Goodwin has a second degree in computer science. He has overseen the placing of iPads and iPods (for smaller hands), and described a scenario where a classroom is given a question, then a student raises his hand, and with the push of a few keys becomes the teacher for a while. Of the emerging technology, Goodwin said, “That’s their world.”
Tami Martin, Charter Director at Cross Lake Community School, declared herself as “A small-town girl – from a school that’s done consolidation.” She sees herself as a facilitator: “When a decision is reached I need to facilitate what the board wants to do.” She claimed to have brought her district from a nine percent fund balance to 40 percent in five years. She described drawing the community in by encouraging the PTO to meet at local businesses and restaurants instead of at the school. She also gave examples of partnering. She has developed advanced skills at data collection and consolidation “to make sure no one’s falling through the cracks.” When hiring, she looks for “Interpersonal skills. I can help with a lesson plan, that’s mechanical. There’s a lot more engagement going on (between teacher and students) than just the lessons.”
Finalists
The board reviewed their own evaluations and those of the Community Group as compiled by the facilitators. There was some, but not much, discrepancy between the board’s preferences and the community’s. After discussion and a few tallies, the board voted to select Drs. Goodwin and Mortensen as finalists.
Before the final interviews on Thursday, board members will have made site visits, to Platt for Dr. Goodwin (led by John Harrington) and to Brooklyn Center for Dr. Mortensen (led by Rick Schultz).
The second interviews will be at 5 p.m. (Goodwin) and 7 p.m. (Mortensen) after the finalists have each had a tour of the district and facilities and a meeting with the District Leadership Team.
At 8:30 p.m. the Board will consider the results of the interviews and the site visits to settle on a candidate to whom to offer the contract.
