PORT TOWNSEND — The selection of a new superintendent for the Port Townsend school system kicks into high gear this week with a marathon interview process that finds each of the four candidates following the same schedule on consecutive days.
Each finalist will be featured in separate public meetings at 6:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday at the Blue Heron Middle School Commons, 3939 San Juan Ave.
The schedule of district visits is:
■ Monday — John R. Alberghini of Waterbury Center, Vt., who is superintendent of Chittenden East Supervisory Union in Richmond, Vt.
■ Tuesday — Ellen Perconti, director of curriculum and assessment in the Lewiston, Idaho, Independent School District.
■ Wednesday — David Engle of Lawrenceville, N.J., former superintendent at the North Platte School District in Nebraska.
■ Thursday — Mellody Matthes, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning in the Tukwila School District.
“This has gone really well,” said School Board President Jennifer James-Wilson.
“We have been able to focus on the candidates, and the process hasn’t been so compressed.”
Chosen from 23 applicants
The four were chosen from 23 applicants.
The district chose to skip the semifinalist step and move directly into the selection of finalists because the semifinalist step requires candidate privacy, which is difficult to achieve when balanced with the need for public input, James-Wilson said.
The district last sought a superintendent in 2010, when Tom Opstad announced in March that he would not return the following school year.
The board was unable to find a suitable permanent candidate and instead hired Gene Laes as interim superintendent for one school year.
The board subsequently extended Laes’ contract through the current school year and began its search for a new superintendent in November.
Former finalist
Matthes was a finalist in the 2010 search but took herself out of the running just as the board was to choose between two candidates.
She subsequently said she had another job offer in Tukwila and had been given a time limit for its acceptance.
At the time, Matthes told the Peninsula Daily News that she would consider applying for the position again the following year “if the Tukwila job doesn’t work out.”
“She had a bird in the hand and needed to make a decision,” James-Wilson said.
Daily schedule
Each candidate will follow the same schedule.
The day will begin at 8 a.m. with a School Board greeting, followed by a series of meetings: 8:15 a.m., Laes; 9 a.m., district administrators; and 9:30 a.m., district staff.
At 10 a.m., the finalist will tour the district before meeting with high school students and staff at 11 a.m.
After a 12:30 p.m. lunch, the candidate will tour more of the district, then meet with Grant Street Elementary staff at 2:55 p.m. and Blue Heron Middle School staff at 3:30 p.m.
At 4:30 p.m., the finalist will meet with community leaders at the Bishop Hotel, 714 Washington St., and at 5:30 p.m. have an hour of free time before the public meeting at 6:30 p.m.
At 7:30 p.m., the candidate will dine with the School Board in a closed executive session at 5100 Kuhn St.
Choice to be made Friday
James-Wilson said the board expects to make its choice Friday. No time has been announced for the meeting.
In 2010, the board was offering $120,000 per year for the superintendent’s position.
Laes is receiving a salary of $96,000. He works four days a week.
All meetings aside from executive sessions are open to the public, but James-Wilson said anyone evaluating the candidates should attend the same meeting every day.
“You want to be consistent when you are forming your opinion so you are comparing apples to apples,” she said.
“During the last selection, there were people walking in and out, so it was hard to evaluate them on common ground.”
For more information, visit http://tinyurl.com/88pd9t6.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.