Search Is On for Next WJCC Superintendent

By Amber Lester Friday, May 14, 2010

The Williamsburg-James City County School Board has begun its search for the next superintendent of schools, with help from the Virginia School Board Association.

During a Thursday work session, the board also appointed WJCC Assistant Superintendent of Finance Scott Burckbuchler to act as superintendent while the board conducts its national search for the next superintendent of WJCC schools. Burckbuchler has also served as the Human Resources director for the division for the past year; the board recently approved funding to hire an HR director in the next fiscal year. Because he is taking on additional responsibilities, Burckbuchler will now be compensated a salary of $150,000, plus $10,000 in car expenses.

The board met with VSBA Executive Director Frank Barham and Assistant Executive Director Gina Patterson to hammer out the details of how the superintendent search will be conducted. The board plans to conduct a national search and hopes to find the next superintendent by December.

For the first time since at least 1990, the board will not announce its finalists. The VSBA recommends keeping finalists’ names confidential, because revealing them almost guarantees some good candidates will withdraw from contention. The board voted to follow the VSBA’s advice.

Current Superintendent Gary Mathews accepted a job as the next superintendent of schools in Newton County, Georgia on March 25. His last day in WJCC is June 30, but he has been on an extended leave to tend to his wife, who is in recovery from surgery in his home state of Louisiana.

Mathews first announced his intention to leave at the end of this school year in November. The board could not begin the search process, however, until Mathews set an end date for his tenure.

During the board’s work session, Barham said the most effective employee searches last 45 to 60 days because most superintendents will not apply until about 10 days prior to the deadline. Virginia Code requires a new superintendent be hired 160 days after the vacancy.

The VSBA recommended the board hold a public hearing for input around mid-September, and accept applications until mid-October. The board would then conduct candidate interviews from November to December. The board would then have the option to officially appoint the new superintendent the following July, which would provide more flexibility to candidates currently employed.

The board makes the sole hiring decision, according to Virginia law, and the VSBA recommends the public not be involved in the interview process. Barham said it becomes difficult to decide who to include in the process and who to leave out; if you try to include everyone, “pretty soon you have a mob instead of a committee.”

Instead, the board will involve the public by distributing surveys that will help determine the desired characteristics, education level and professional experience the next superintendent should possess. Those answers will help form the job ad, which will be mailed to a list of all people licensed to be superintendents in Virginia and placed in trade publications and on websites.

VSBA also recommends the board invite all eligible internal candidates to apply and guarantee them interviews. Barham says interviewing internal candidates not only builds good morale, but could lead to the perfect candidate, already familiar with the division’s challenges and needs.

The VSBA will help the board screen candidates, and Barham recommended the board consider hiring a private detective or utilizing Sheriff’s offices to conduct background searches on prospective employees. The board is, by law, prohibited from asking candidates personal questions, but Barham said school board association members can always talk to other members to find out more about candidates.

The VSBA will also, with suggestions from the public or the board, attempt to recruit any superintendents who seem like a good fit for the job, but aren’t actively looking to move. Board member John Alewynse asked if Williamsburg and James City County would be considered the buyer or the seller in this market; Barham said it is a seller. Sample job ads from Henrico County and Fredericksburg both mentioned proximity to the Historic Triangle as selling points for their divisions.

The VSBA also suggested ways the board could adjust its superintendent contract to be more “board-friendly.” Barham, a former superintendent, recommended offering three-year contracts and including a provision to let a superintendent go if the person just didn’t feel like the right fit. He also advised the board to only pay for sick and vacation leave earned while working for WJCC, and require the superintendent take leave earned in WJCC before dipping into accrued leave from previous positions.

The board voted unanimously in March to enlist the help of the VSBA to conduct its national search. The cost, which is based on the size of the district, is $10,000 plus fees.