Pittsburgh Public School’s national search for a new superintendent will be a multi-month, transparent process full of community input, Board President Regina Holley said Monday.
The process will begin in January with seven forums held from 6 to 9 p.m. at schools around the city. Childcare will be provided, and all events will be streamed at pittsupsearch.com. There will also be a dedicated email, voicemail and Twitter feed for public input, she said.
“Hopefully what you see resembles a very thoughtful process ... intended to communicate to everyone in the Pittsburgh community that their voice is important as it relates to the school-aged children in the city,” said Brian Perkins, the consultant leading the search.
The district inked a deal not to exceed $100,000 with Perkins Consulting Group after Superintendent Linda Lane announced her departure earlier this year.
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported, "the firm was found to have no documented history of completing a superintendent's search, according to biographical information and references submitted to the city school board. The board also did not distribute a request for proposals for other potential search firm candidates."
Holley stressed transparency going forward.
“This is not only just for this city, but I would say nationally, an unprecedented approach to involving the community in the search process for a superintendent,” Perkins said.
Lane is stepping down in June after five years in that position.
After the forums' conclusion, board members will look at the input and write up a job description, Holley said, and a national search will begin in February. Interviews are scheduled to begin through March and April. By May, Holley said they hope to have someone in place.
