When it chooses a search firm at its Oct. 15 meeting, Ector County ISD trustees want an organization that can cast a wide net and get the district from good to better and best.
The board heard from four search firms Oct. 8. They included HYA Corporation, JG Consulting, the Texas Association of School Boards and Walsh Gallegos Kyle Robinson & Roalson P.C.
HYA was the firm that brought retiring Superintendent Scott Muri to the district in 2019. Muri announced his retirement in August.
Board President Chris Stanley said the district will search nationwide for the next chief.
According to the Texas ISD website, which tracks superintendent vacancies and where superintendents wind up, there are currently 75 spots open around the state.
“We need to see what’s out there … These search firms are going to be tasked to go out there and find that person, that agent of change, to come to Ector County and help us,” Stanley said.
He added that the “shocking” thing for him is that you can only expect a superintendent to stay for three to five years. “I think a lot of people think in terms of a generational person, but that’s not the world we live in,” Stanley said.
He indicated that it would be good if the next superintendent had some experience in Texas.
“But I think what you find is people work in Texas go to other places, move around, and then potentially might be interested in” coming back, Stanley said.
“I also think that that when you think about just the mythos of West Texas, somebody’s going to really want to have to come here, and we really want someone who wants to come here,” he added.
What’s going to be most important when choosing a search firm, Stanley said, is how aggressive they are going to be. He wants to find the best possible superintendent for the children of ECISD.
“We need to find a person who understands … these kids are going to be alive in the 22nd century …We have to prepare for 22nd century learning. Their children will live in the 22nd century. Our children will be our teachers. Our teachers for those children will be our community leaders, and so we have to have somebody who can help us prepare for that,” Stanley said.
He acknowledged that Muri was very engaged. He was on state boards and testified before the legislature. He also was engaged at the local level attending events and visiting campuses.
Stanley said these are tough shoes to fill.
“We’re going to find that next age of change, and we have to go far afield,” he added.
When Muri first came on board, his focus was to fill teacher vacancies. The next superintendent, Stanley said, should focus on moving up the test scores and college, career and military readiness scores.
Muri, who attended the special meeting, said ECISD issued a request for proposals and 11 search firms responded. The district finance team went through the proposals and selected the four finalists.
The firms included HYA Corporation, JG Consulting, the Texas Association of School Boards and Walsh Gallegos Kyle Robinson & Roalson P.C. The finalists were chosen by the ECISD finance department.
Firms had 20 minutes to present what made them stand out. Many of them were former superintendents.
The firms have some things in common such as stakeholder surveys and community forums. Stanley said they want to hear from parents, teachers, students and administrators about what they would like to see in the next superintendent.
Jodi Duron of HYA said HYA conducted the search that resulted in Muri’s hiring in 2019. HYA has more than 130 associates nationwide.
Duron said 94 percent of the superintendents placed in the last 10 years have stayed the full term of their contract.
The process generally takes about three months and everything they do is customizable.
Michael Hinojosa and Annette Tielle appeared on behalf of JG Consulting. Both are former superintendents.
Hinojosa said they use lots of technology, spend quality time in the district and have a video component where candidates answer four questions.
“We collect information on all searches in the country,” Hinojosa said. “Anybody that’s searching for a superintendent, you can see where they are so we know what the competition is.”
Tielle said out of 39 consultants in the firm 33 are retired superintendents.
Planning discussions would start almost immediately. The timeline shown to the board starts this month and ends in February. Applications would close in January.
“You’re at a crossroad. You’re making the most important decision for this community in the next 10 years,” Hinojosa said.
“Everybody’s watching you and you’ve got to get this right,” he added. “This is something you as a board need to be focused on. You need to be unanimous. It’s got to be someone that can fit in here because they are the face … of the community.”
George Kazanas of the Texas Association of School Boards presented on behalf of the organizations. TASB has conducted more than 800 superintendent searches since 1988.
They have an all-inclusive fee that covers the search process.
They covered the timeline for the search process and said they want to work with all seven school board members. They have added a video component to the application process where candidates spend 3 to 4 minutes answering questions.
Laura Rodriguez McLean and Ann Dixon presented for the Walsh Gallegos law firm. McLean presented in person and Dixon was virtual. Dixon was an interim superintendent at Midland ISD as well.
McLean said the selection process is board driven.
The firm solicits board input on which stakeholders should be included in the conversation and then hold stakeholder meetings.
The firm obtains board input on advertising the position and organize all collected application materials to be efficiently reviewed by the board, McLean said.
They work with the board to seek out particular candidates at its request.
Walsh Gallegos holds stakeholders meetings. They offer an adaptable process based on the needs and wants of the board and they are therefore personalized.
McLean said they have a brand reach. Their reputation lends credibility and appeal to the searches they conduct.
Their client reach allows them to recruit the best candidates possible, according to the presentation.
The firm has conducted more than 90 superintendent searches in Texas for districts of all sizes.
There are no applicant services or stable.
They offer thorough vetting. McLean said if there is particular information about background or experience, it does get thoroughly vetted.
Dixon said she does all the vetting and the firm negotiates the contract.
Stanley said the finance department chose the search firm finalists because financial integrity is “so important” for ECISD.
“We want to make sure that we’re vetting these search firms so that these search firms have a long history of successful searches and financial integrity,” Stanley said.
