How to Search for a Superintendent of Schools

This past Tuesday, December 7, 2010, MoCo's Board of Education hired Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates (HYA) to assist in its search for the next Superintendent of Schools.  As stated in the press release:  

 HYA was chosen from among six search firms that responded to the Board’s Request for Proposals (RFP) in September. The Board unanimously approved a contract for $35,000 plus expenses with HYA during its December 7 meeting. 

  “Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates has 20 years of experience and has participated in over 800 superintendent searches, many for large districts like ours,” said Christopher Barclay, president of the Board of Education. “They have the knowledge and experience to help us attract the strongest pool of qualified candidates and to fully engage all facets of the community in the search process.” 

. . . 
  The Board will be meeting with HYA very soon to develop a work plan for the search, including the nature and extent of community involvement and engagement.

 Would you like to participate in the process?  Here is how you can practice, right now, from the comfort of your own home.


HYA is conducting superintendent searches for the following school districts.  Click on the link and you can see the questions used in Mill Valley California.


Practice now, practice frequently, but hurry up, because the Mill Valley web states that the website will close down soon.  


You may ask, is this a good use of your time?  Absolutely, because the survey is likely to be the same one administered right here in MoCo.  How do we know?  Because the same survey was administered in  Marblehead, MA and  Chappaqua, NY - two districts also looking for Superintendents of Schools, but these surveys were closed down within the last 24 hours.  


Looks like the MoCo Board of Education really searched for the most economical and reliable firm, since $35,000 will likely be used for a recycled stakeholder questionnaire that has already gone through the validation process in other school systems.  MoCo also saves money, because the system doesn't require a password to participate.  In fact, anyone can answer any questionnaire, once it is posted, even if the responder doesn't live in the area.


Let's hope the candidates for our Superintendent selection process however, fit the requirements of our school system and not the ones rejected by the other school systems.  


What a deal for Montgomery County taxpayers.