When Dr. Jim Boyle resigned in 2003, the school district used a search firm from the Texas Association of School Boards. The district paid $5,113 before cutting the process short and hiring then-interim Superintendent Dr. Pamela Harrison.
When Dr. Harrison was asked to resign at the end of 2005, the board again had to search for a new superintendent. The district spent $16,536 on a six-month search to find Beto Gonzalez, who resigned in August to take a position as deputy superintendent in Brownsville.
Gonzalez was selected after a team from Harold Webb Associates conducted interviews and surveys with community members and teachers to define what the district wanted in a superintendent. Gonzalez was then selected as one of five promising candidates and then was selected as one of two semifinalists. He was named the sole finalist in June 2007.
Board president Steve Wright said the board will hear presentations from three search firms this year and expect to have selected one by the end of the year. He said the search could cost between $15,000 to $18,000.
“This appears to be the going rate,” Wright said. “You can get it done for less, or much more, but it’s one of those things where you get what you pay for. Price will be one of the determining factors (in choosing a firm). Obviously the scope of their work affects their price.”
He said that while the board and the search team will put in many man-hours, it will not affect the workload of school district personnel to a significant degree.
He said the search requires multiple meetings with the firm, several interviews with candidates and their spouses, and possibly a visit to candidates’ previous employer.
He said the board will follow due diligence in the search process and make a choice that will be economical and effective.
“Hopefully this will be the last time in a long time that we will have to do this,” Wright said.
kchandler@temple-telegram.com
