New JCPS superintendent discusses upcoming challenges

A good experience 18 years ago in the Jefferson City School District inspired Larry Linthacum - the incoming superintendent hired Thursday to lead the district, starting this coming summer - to submit his resume when the spot opened.

Linthacum, current superintendent of the Maryville Public Schools, will replace Brian Mitchell, effective July 1. Linthacum's salary will be $180,000. Mitchell earned $206,000 for the 2013-14 school year.

An educator for more than 20 years, Linthacum currently is serving his fourth year as superintendent in Maryville. Prior to that, he worked as superintendent, career center director and counselor for the South Harrison R-2 School District. He taught and coached in Jefferson City during the 1995-96 school year.

"Honestly, I have fond memories of the Jefferson City Public Schools, the community, the "Jay Pride.' There was just something, honestly, very special about the place - even though I was there for just one year. But it truly was a special place. It was where I started teaching."

During his tenure at the high school, he taught accounting, business law and keyboarding in the business department under former Principal Richard Pemberton. He also served as an assistant football and basketball coach.

Linthacum said he had a "great experience" teaching that year and he's looking forward to, once again, being a part of Jefferson City's traditions, community and culture of continuous improvement.

The Jefferson City Board of Education interviewed Linthacum twice - once a week ago and then again on Thursday - before casting a unanimous decision.

"We met with him again, and had some more questions and some more vetting to do, and then when it was finished we were 7-0 that he was the one we wanted for our superintendent," Board President Dennis Nickelson said.

Nickelson said 19 people applied for the job and about 10 of those were considered serious contenders. The board interviewed four people. None of the other candidates' names have been made public through the process.

"It was really hard, those top four. I told the board members that, if you rank them - give them scores of 0-100 - that they were all over 95 in my head," Nickelson said.

Nickelson said Linthacum was chosen because of his ability to build relationships and to understand JCPS's myriad of issues.

The Jefferson City School District is quite a bit larger than Maryville's.

Jefferson City has 9,104 students enrolled in the public schools, compared to 1,486 in Maryville, according to the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Jefferson City also employs 755 certified staff, compared to 152 employees in Maryville. And Linthacum will oversee staff at 17 buildings here, compared to five in Maryville.

Nickelson didn't think Maryville's smaller size will be a handicap. He noted Mitchell worked as a superintendent for a smaller district prior to his stint as assistant superintendent in Independence. Previous district superintendent Chris Straub and Bert Kimble came from Hannibal and Odessa, respectively.

"And they both had successful tenures," Nickelson said.

"He needs to be a good communicator with the patrons of the district and the community," Nickelson added.

In a phone interview, Linthacum sounded unintimidated.

Speaking about the mutual expectations the community and district leaders have for one another, he added: "You can work together to work toward those common goals, and you set a vision for where you want to be, and you're going to have adversity along the way, and there are challenges with being with a larger school district.

"You can't deny that."

"But you work through those challenges and you communicate, and you listen, and I think that's a very important component of communicating. You work through the process ... you get everybody on the same page and everyone rowing in the same direction," he said. "Then, truly, the potential is unlimited."

According to a report on MaryvilleDailyForum.com, Linthacum's tenure in Maryville included implementation of a random student drug-testing program, a pair of state football championships and passage by district voters in April of a $10.25 million bond issue that is being used to finance construction of a new performing arts center and practice gymnasium at Maryville High School.

Speaking to a Maryville Daily Forum reporter Friday, Linthacum said his proudest accomplishment was the 95.47 Annual Performance Review score the Maryville district received from DESE for the 2013-14 school year.

Linthacum said he was attracted by the "tremendous opportunities" the Jefferson City job offers.

"I feel like my values, and what I believe in, matches what the Jefferson City Public Schools believe in," he said, citing "building relationships," "setting high expectations, "connecting with the community" and "working together" as four shared values.

"I'm looking forward to working with the tremendous staff and getting to know the community members, community leaders, parents and staff," he said.

He said his No. 1 goal will be to "connect with all stakeholders."

"And that connection starts with our students and with our parents and with our staff and with our community members," he said.

"I'm a believer in the team approach."

Board members Joy Sweeney and Alan Mudd said they hope hiring a new leader will allow the district to have a fresh - and less turbulent - start with parents, students and other patrons who had voiced complaints over problems with student discipline and teacher morale.

"That is my hope," Sweeney said.

She noted some employees of the district haven't felt supported by district leaders, and others feel like they are not being heard.

Sweeney believes Linthacum's ability to work well with others will overcome his lack of experience with a larger district. She described a man who is "very approachable" and who "understands the importance of getting to know people."

"Yes, Maryville is a smaller community and school district," she replied. "But, like Jefferson City, the district is very spread out."

After engaging in an eight-week-long search, Sweeney said the board was "thrilled" to hire Linthacum. Listing his strengths, she said he's an "excellent communicator and phenomenal relationship-builder" who values team collaboration.

"He's personable, friendly, and intelligently so. I think he will be able to empower our children to be successful, and that's what everybody wants," Sweeney said.

Mudd said: "Obviously we felt he's the best fit for the school district.

"His strengths are an ability to establish positive relationships. ... His people skills are excellent. He's a person who will grow very comfortably into the superintendency. We expect great things from him."

Mudd said Linthacum's references were positive, with some saying he handled difficult situations with courage and skill and others mentioning he led the Maryville district in a transparent fashion.

The selection process - which was facilitated by the Missouri School Boards' Association's Superintendent Search Program - was elaborate, Sweeney said. She noted the MSBA team did a good job of gathering pertinent and detailed data on the applicants, which eased the board's ability to compare and contrast the top competitors.

It's expected Linthacum will be burning up the 250-plus miles of highway between Maryville and Jefferson City in the months to come. Board members have already said they want his input on the hiring of a new principal for Jefferson City High School and he'll likely be a part of the process to select other building leaders.

It's not yet clear what impact this hire will have on the board's decision to go forward with a major bond issue this spring, or wait for a more propitious moment. This fall the Long Range Facilities Planning Committee issued a list of recommendations - including the construction of a second high school and the renovation of the 609 Union St. campus - to create more space for students.

"We don't know yet," Nickelson explained, noting a survey taking the public's pulse is completed, but the results have not been shared yet with the board.

Any ballot language must be certified by Jan. 27.

"It could be either way, and it depends on what we get back from our survey as to what the temperature is of our community," Nickelson said.

Linthacum's also planning on hurrying his graduate work.

He has master's and specialist's degrees from Northwest Missouri State University, Maryville. He is working on his doctorate degree from the University of Missouri at Columbia. He'll be finished with his classes in May, but still will have to complete his comprehensive exams and dissertation.

"Well, I'm going to try to speed that process up, because I know once I get down there, things are going to pick up pace," he said. "I'm close. There's light at the end of the tunnel."

Linthacum coached football and basketball in Jefferson City. Eager to be a head basketball coach, he left Jefferson City to work in the South Harrison district for five years, essentially moving home to Bethany. He also was the head football coach - in two different stints - for two years total, he said.

After growing up in Bethany and graduating from high school in 1986, he enrolled at the University of Missouri. Redshirted in the fall of 1986, he ultimately played football for MU Coaches Woody Widenhofer and Bob Stull.

Asked how the Maryville board of education responded to the news, Linthacum characterized their response as "disappointed."

"We've done some great things here," he said. "There's great people in Maryville."

Linthacum, 47, is married to Angie Linthacum, a Bethany native. They met when he moved back to Bethany after his stint in Jefferson City. Together they have four children between the ages of eight and 14.

The oldest child will attend Simonsen 9th Grade Center next fall.

He said his family is looking forward to moving to Jefferson City, but they also are celebrating some of the successes they've been a part of in Maryville.

"We've had some honest conversations at our house, and it was something that was not easy, but I think that our family saw this as a great opportunity," he said.

It's not clear yet how the community will respond to the news of Linthacum's hiring, but critics of the district's leadership team appear cautiously optimistic.

"I'd say most people in Jefferson City are looking for a change of leadership," said Dan Ortmeyer, an advocate of building a second high school. "We don't see it (Linthacum's hiring) as a "fix-all.' And, we have some other big issues that need to be addressed, such as the upcoming board election in April."

But Ortmeyer was open to hearing more about Linthacum's resume.

"The information I saw looks promising," he said. "From my point of view, it might be a good choice."