Search for supe sparks debate Search for supe sparks debate (October 01, 2004)

Trustees bicker over when to begin looking for new superintendent

By Julie O'Shea

In a tense study session Tuesday night, Mountain View-Whisman trustees clashed over how to begin the search for the district's next permanent superintendent.

While all expressed interest in earmarking funds for the effort, trustees disagreed over how much the current board should get involved when a new one will be ushered in by voters next month.

Trustees Gloria Higgins and Carol Fisher said the board should begin hearing presentations from search consultants next month. Ellen Wheeler and Fran Kruss, on the other hand, said such a step should be decided by the incoming board; to do otherwise, they added, would be an insult to current Superintendent Eleanor Yick, whose 10-month contract expires in June.

"It would seem like she was hired to do this dirty work (such as closing a school), and then get out of town," Wheeler said. "I am nervous about this board taking on a commitment for the new board that the new board may not even want."

Higgins and Fisher both argued, however, that they want to give the next board as many options as possible. If the superintendent search starts in January and not next month, Higgins said, "it puts them in a crunch timeline.

"The fact is, we have a contract (with Yick) until June 30 with no prospects after that," Higgins added. "We have an issue that needs addressing, and we can't wait three months."

This was the first time the board discussed the issue in public since accepting former Superintendent Jim Negri's resignation in August. Negri left the district after two years to take a job with a Contra Costa County school district. The Mountain View-Whisman board appointed Yick to succeed Negri for the remainder of the school year.

The current board then decided that the district would hold off making any definitive decisions on the matter until after the new board takes control in December. Fisher and board President Rose Filicetti are retiring from the board at the end of this year. Higgins is running for re-election. Four others are vying for the other two open seats.

The school district spent roughly $35,000 in its search for Negri. Some parents have complained that the district does not have the money to conduct a new search. Others, however, think a search is necessary to find the best candidate possible. Supporters of Yick maintain that the district already has the best candidate for the job.

Trustees decided Tuesday to hold off making any decisions on the superintendent search timeline until a later board meeting.

E-mail Julie O'Shea at joshea@mv-voice.com

E-mail a friend a link to this story.