Goodrich – It was a night to discuss what qualities a new superintendent should have before being hired to take over the helm in the school district.
The superintendent search forum on the evening of Sept. 19 at the high school community room, brought out a handful of community members. Also present was board president, Michael Tripp, and presiding over the meeting was Carl Hartman from the Michigan Association of School Boards, who was hired by the district’s school board to assist with the superintendent search after superintendent Kim Hart was put on administrative leave in July. Hart was recently hired by Whitmore Lake Public Schools.
Hartman polled those community members in attendance with two general questions:
‘What kind of leadership characteristics should a new superintendent have, and what issues need to be addressed by the new superintendent??
‘The ability to really listen,? responded Christine Boone, a local resident and audience member.
Another district resident, Mark Griffiths, expressed the need for communications.
‘They must have integrity, and that means we need to trust the new superintendent to make sure all information is open and given to the public,? he said.
Hartman said that as of Sept. 19, six applications have been received for the district position.
‘One comment I heard over and over again today as I talked to teachers and support staff is, they want a superintendent who isn’t a control freak,? said Hartman.
Promising to take the community concerns directly to the board, Hartman said the results from the evening’s forum and interviews he had with teachers and support staff would be discussed at the regular school board meeting scheduled for 6 p.m., Sept. 24.