BRINNON — Five candidates applying for a joint superintendent position for the Brinnon and Quilcene school districts will be interviewed at a closed meeting that includes both school boards Thursday morning.
The executive session meeting will begin at 10 a.m. in the Brinnon School library, 46 Schoolhouse Road.
It is not open to the public because it discusses personnel matters.
The semi-finalists were selected from a field of eight applicants, Brinnon School Board Chairwoman Val Schindler said.
The five, which Schindler said includes educators from both inside and outside Washington state, will be winnowed down to three finalists sometime after Thursday’s meeting.
Those finalists will participate in a daylong public event May 9, when they will travel to both districts to meet with staff, parents and students.
The new superintendent will be selected from the three finalists after collecting community input, Schindler said.
The idea of hiring one person to fill both part-time positions was first broached this spring when both Quilcene Superintendent David Anderson and Brinnon Superintendent Nancy Thompson announced they would retire at the end of the school year.
Anderson has served for eight years, while Thompson has worked in her position for five.
Each received a part-time salary, with Anderson earning $44,000 a year and Thompson $44,443.
The joint position was advertised at $92,000, Schindler said.
Once hired, the new superintendent would spend time at both districts, Schindler said.
While the superintendent’s time would be split, each district would maintain its own school board, faculty and business office.
“This is not a consolidation,” Schindler said.
“Each district has different needs and priorities.”
Quilcene — made up of an elementary, middle and high school — has 400 students plus 15 in preschool.
Brinnon, which offers classes only through the eighth grade, has 50 students, which includes 13 preschoolers.
Brinnon does not have its own principal or special-education director, so those roles would be assumed by the superintendent, Schindler said.
Schedule for May 9
The schedule for May 9 requires the candidates to shuttle back and forth between Quilcene and Brinnon, which are separated by 12 miles of U.S. Highway 101.
The morning meetings are in Quilcene, with a luncheon including all the candidates and both school boards at the Olympic Timber House Restaurant, 295534 U.S. Highway 101.
The candidates will meet with students after lunch and then travel to Brinnon to meet with the school staff.
After those meetings, each candidate will return to Quilcene to meet with that district’s staff.
The candidates will meet with the public in Quilcene beginning at 6 p.m. in the Quilcene School multipurpose room, 294715 U.S. Highway 101.
Public meetings in Brinnon will begin at 7 p.m. in the school library.
The schedule is staggered, with each candidate meeting the public for 30 minutes at a time.
Schindler is convinced the new setup will succeed.
“This is not an experiment,” she said.
“Sharing superintendents has been done in several districts across the state and has worked very well.”
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.