Online poll to gauge community's goals for new JCPS superintendent

What are the leadership characteristics of an effective school superintendent?

The Jefferson City Board of Education is asking the public to weigh in on that question with a survey posted to the district's website.

The one-question online poll - which can be found at www.jcschools.us - asks respondents to choose what they believe are the three most important traits for the board to seek in a candidate.

On the list are suggestions such as having: expertise in fiscal management; the ability to work in harmony with staff and the board; experience as an administrator; the ability to build and maintain community relations; and being visible and accessible to students, staff, the community, etc.

"The board is collecting information from the community to determine the qualities needed by successful candidates for superintendent to lead the Jefferson City Public Schools," Board President Dennis Nickelson said.

The board launched the search process in late October after Brian Mitchell, the current superintendent, announced on Oct. 1 his decision to explore a new career path after he completes his contract next spring.

The board has agreed to use the Missouri School Boards' Association's Superintendent Search Program.

Paul James - the program's lead consultant and a former superintendent in Missouri - described his team's work as "turn key" because it handles every aspect of the search, from publicizing the job announcement to hosting community focus groups to arranging for interviews and assisting with salary negotiations.

It is James' group that initiated the survey, which will be available to the public until 10 p.m. Friday.

The overall purpose of the questionnaire is to define what characteristics a successful superintendent would have in the eyes of the public and staff in the community.

"We have done these surveys on a number of occasions, and usually we get a very nice response," James said. "We anticipate about 750 responses on something like this, which will give the board a very nice sample of how the community feels."

Results will be broken down into categories. For example, surveyors hope to compare and contrast what teachers, parents and other community members regard as the most-important characteristics in a school district leader.

"The board's responsibility is to balance all those viewpoints," James noted.

"Our hope is to have a large response to guide us in developing a clear picture," Nickelson said.

The online poll also allows the public to submit comments for the board's consideration.

The board is also conducting focus groups to glean a better picture of what the community is seeking. Amy Berendzen, spokesperson for the JCPS district, said six focus groups were held last week and two more will be held this week.

Nickelson said he hasn't yet heard much feedback from the public about the survey.

"But the responses from the focus groups are reported to be very consistent," he added.

James was hopeful all the data will be able to be aggregated before Thanksgiving. In an effort to be able to interview the best candidates, the school board is hoping to narrow the search to five or fewer people, and conduct interviews in December and January.