By Marcia Barnes
Staff Writer
A Special Called Meeting of the Clay County Board of Education opened at 5 p.m., Wednesday, June 14 as Chairman Jason Shook asked for approval of the agenda.
The agenda included approval of The Masonboro Group. They were approved and selected by the board in a search for a new superintendent following the recent resignation of Dale Cole. The Board of Education chose the professional superintendent search firm to assist in the selection of its next superintendent. The Masonboro Group also conducted the last search for the board.
The Masonboro Group is a North Carolina firm and the total fee, including costs to conduct the search is $21,350. Ron Melchiorre, representing The Masonboro Group and Richard Schwartz, Clay County Schools attorney were both present at the Special Called Meeting via Zoom. Chairman Jason Shook said he looked forward to another successful search and getting the position posted.
In a press release to the community Shook said, “This is the most important job of a school board, when we have to select a new superintendent and we want to do all we can to run a professional search and make the best choice for Clay County Schools. Our school system is in a very good place right now and we have a lot of exciting plans for the future. This selection is critical to keep us on an upward trajectory.”
The board approved a timeline leading to the selection of a superintendent by October 30, 2023, allowing time to survey the public for input and to advertise, recruit candidates and complete the rigorous selection process.
Opportunities for public input will include community meetings conducted by the The Masonboro Group on July 11, from 4 to 5 p.m. and from 7 to 8 p.m. A second round of community meetings will be held on July 12, from 11 to 11:30 a.m. and from 3 to 3:30 p.m. The public is invited to attend these important meetings which will be held at the Board of Education Building, 154 Yellow Jacket Drive in Hayesville. Staff and community surveys will take place from July 5 to July 15.
The position will be advertised following a school board meeting on July 24 to finalize the selection criteria. The application deadline will be September 15, 2023.
Listed is a complete approved timeline for the Clay County Superintendent search.
• Meeting with Board of Education - June 14.
• Community Meetings - July 11-12.
• Faculty/Community Surveys/Opinionaire - July 5-15.
• Criteria Approval by Board of Education - July 24.
• Advertising of Position - July 25-Sept. 15.
• Application Deadline - Sept. 15.
• Review of Credentials, Character, Etc July 25-Sept. 22.
• Meeting with Board to Select Candidates - Oct. 9.
• First-Round Interviews of Selected Candidates - 2 p.m. Oct. 18.
• Interviews of Finalists - 3 p.m. Oct. 25.
• Candidate Selection - Oct. 25.
• Candidate Approval - Oct. 30.
• Bi-Weekly Memos to Board of Education - Aug. 1 - Oct. 31
• Feedback from board to Masonboro Group after Superintendent Selection.
Information on the selection and updates from the Board of Education may also be found on Facebook and at the Hayesville Schools website: www.clayschools.org.
The next special called board meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Monday, June 26. The next regular board meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday, June 29.