Nov. 13 – The Higley Unified School District Governing Board has decided to let the district’s human resources department find a new superintendent instead of hiring an outside firm.
HUSD Superintendent Sherry Richards has said she plans to retire at the end of this school year.
Richards was appointed after a fiasco involving a candidate found by a headhunting firm. After hiring the candidate, the board terminated his contract a month later after he became involved in a conflict of interest controversy in the Texas district where he had worked.
This time around, the HUSD board is leaning toward trusting the district’s human resources team.
Board member Kristina Reese explained that during her time on the board, the superintendent search has been conducted both ways and that there are pros and cons to both approaches.
“If you have a business, that sort of removes early biases. But on the other hand, if you have a business, they have no interest in what happens either,” she said.
Reese also said she preferred the in-house method because a district team would understand the district’s needs and the cost of a search would also be less expensive.
“I would certainly have committees made up of different stakeholders, but I would not include a board member on those committees,” she said, suggesting a panel of community members vet the candidates.
Board member Tiffany Shultz agreed with Reese’s idea that the district have a stake in the search, but was concerned about the additional time Higley’s HR might have for the process.
“We were frustrated with the process before. And I have confidence in Ms. Johnson that she can certainly make this happen,” she told Higley’s executive director of HR and student services, Karen Johnson.
Board of Directors Vice President Anna Van Hoek agreed with the idea of creating committees to assist in the hiring of a new superintendent, but wanted to be sure they covered all laws and regulations associated with such a panel involves compliance.
Johnson said, “There’s that confidentiality piece, as you recall, that you have to sign that confidentiality agreement during the process of that hire. So please keep in mind that anyone who is part of this committee, or whatever, it must be confidential. .”
Board member Amanda Wade also supported the internal approach, saying that last time it took some time for outside companies to understand the district’s expectations.
“One of the things we talked about, if you remember, is our final process and the number of meetings we needed to have so they could understand who we are and what we stand for,” she said.
Board President Michelle Anderson recalled her experience as a community member and parent in the audience, and not as a board member, when an earlier search for a superintendent appeared to favor the district’s allies rather than the best candidate.
“I honestly don’t worry about it, but these are just things. When I think about it, other people think about it,” she warned.
Shultz said the bias would also exist among companies, as they might want to push for a candidate the company likes.
Wade also floated the idea of national advertising by the district for the role, and that bringing it out to a broader network could reduce any biases.
The board agreed that the timeline may also have been a bit tight, but it was worth it to work with their own team to find a new district superintendent.
