TPS begins quest for a new leader

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Toledo school board leaders want a new superintendent at work by the end of June but have only just begun the process of identifying potential candidates.

At a special meeting yesterday of the Toledo Board of Education, a search firm presented its plan, which includes asking the public to fill out comment forms available online at tps.org starting the middle of this week, board President Bob Vasquez said.

A main question is whether the new superintendent would have a traditional educator's background or come from a business-leadership culture, he said.

Superintendent John Foley is leaving the post when his contract expires July 31. He chose not to accept a one-year extension. His current contract was for three years, and his annual salary $152,201.

The next superintendent inherits a school system under fiscal pressure and facing union negotiations.

"Obviously, we need somebody who's ready to accept a challenge," Mr. Vasquez said. "We need someone who can meet these challenges in a way that we get productive results."

He said the June deadline was preferred but said he would be willing to wait and even have an interim superintendent so the right person could be found.

But the question remains whether the most qualified candidates would want the top job in a district facing layoffs and massive cuts to beloved programs, including eliminating all its sports teams.

That pessimism was reflected by the low number of bids received from consulting firms seeking the superintendent search contract. The school system received only three bids. School leaders were expecting more than double that number.

Search firms get paid after they find suitable candidates that school boards end up hiring.

The board chose Columbus-based Ohio School Boards Association, a private nonprofit organization of public school boards that conducts executive searches. The Toledo Public Schools budget is projected to have a $30 million deficit next fiscal year. And a working list of potential cuts to education and extracurricular programs has sparked an outcry from the community.

Voters are being asked to approve a 0.75 percent tax on earned income in a May 4 vote that would raise about $18 million annually to help close that budget hole.

Contact Christopher D. Kirkpatrick at: ckirkpatrick@theblade.com

or 419-724-6134.