Four candidates take step closer to superintendent position

Four out of six candidates for the job of Douglas County School District superintendent have been selected for further consideration.

On Monday, school board members voted 6-0 to further investigate former Vallejo City Unified School District Superintendent Mary Bull, Deputy Superintendent of Chinook's Edge School Division Heather Henderson-Hill, Assistant Superintendent of Humboldt County School District David Jensen and Chief Academic Officer of Washoe County School District Elisabeth Noonan.

Not moving forward are Eldorado High School Principal Ron Lustig and Bethel University professor Tom Hisiro.

Before the final vote, district consultant Jim Huge passed out lists and instructed board members to circle their top candidates. The four candidates listed above each received five votes, and Lustig received one.

Board members then took turns discussing their individual preferences.

"I like the idea of a strong leader, a decision-maker," said Board Clerk Keith Roman. "Not a dictator, but someone willing to make the tough decisions and not agonize over them."

Roman said he liked Jensen, who's been working out of Winnemucca for nearly 15 years.

"They're all good candidates. I'm impressed," he said.

Board member Cindy Trigg also liked Jensen. She said there were concerns that the former school psychologist lacked experience in the classroom.

"I don't think it's a reason not to go forward," she said.

Trigg, who was absent from the last two public interviews but listened to the recordings, said she also appreciated the depth of knowledge, especially in the area of curriculum, demonstrated by the other candidates, though she felt Noonan didn't express as much strength as the others.

Trustee Karen Chessell said she was looking for three things in a superintendent: a record of student achievement, the ability to lead the district, and the ability to engage the community.

"We need someone who's really done this before, and my first choice is Mary Bull," she said.

Chessell said she's fond of Noonan as well, but has concerns that Noonan's experience is limited to elementary education.

Trustee Sharla Hales agreed with the selections of her fellow board members.

"I agree with everything that's been said, and I am very comfortable with the four," she said.

Hales said all four candidates have abundant strengths but some weaknesses, too. She said board members need to explore each in more depth.

Absent from Monday's meeting, board member Randy Green provided his colleagues with a list of his top three choices: Noonan, Jensen and Henderson-Hill.

Board Vice President Tom Moore said he's not in favor of site visits at this time, but is open to video conferencing and a second round of interviews.

"Heather was very interesting. She has a lot of experience and leadership and offers something different," he said. "My concern is that the district is stagnant. Nevada is at the bottom of the list in the rankings, and having someone from outside with different experience is intriguing."

Regarding the three other candidates, Moore said he's interested in Jensen, has concerns about Noonan's decision-making skills, and thought that Bull "did an excellent job portraying that she makes tough decisions from an academic standpoint."

Board President Teri Jamin was pleased there was consensus on the four candidates. She said the ones who impressed her most in their communication with the board were Bull, Henderson-Hill and Noonan.

Moore said the final candidate needs to have business leadership skills. He said they need to be able to work with the business services department and human resources, not just with educational services.

"I'm concerned that an expertise in education may overshadow other areas in the district that need just as much attention," he said. "I'm going to be looking for leadership and decision-making skills that stand out."

Parent Cheryl Blomstrom was the only parent who spoke at Monday's meeting. She said she preferred Bull first, then Lustig and Henderson-Hill. Concerned about trends in graduation rates and test scores, Blomstrom said the district is in need of a strong educational leader.

"We produce vast amounts of data, and we need someone who can wrap their arms around it," she said.

Huge said school principals who met candidates last week recommended Henderson-Hill and Noonan. He said a number of administrators also liked Jensen but were concerned he had no principal experience.

When it came to Bull, Huge said, there was concern in the district whether her controversial departure from Vallejo, during which the remainder of her contract was bought out by the Vallejo school board, would affect her performance in Douglas County.

Huge said there was strong support for Bull in some corners. He said administrators in the district office also liked Noonan, as well as Jensen and Lustig.

Taking the next step, board members voted 6-0 to authorize Jamin and Huge to set up further investigations into the remaining candidates, including compiling follow-up questions from individual board members, and finding contacts who are not references in the candidates' respective districts.

The board tentatively scheduled a meeting 3 p.m. April 14 at the district office to share their findings and another tentative meeting for 4 p.m. April 21 at Douglas High School to make the final selection.

Human Resources Director Rich Alexander said the final candidate would probably be offered a compensation package similar to that of former superintendent Carol Lark, which was around $123,000 a year, plus benefits.