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The Livermore school board voted unanimously last week to embrace support from the Alameda County Office of Education in recruiting and screening for the district’s next superintendent.
The Board of Education also agreed by 5-0 tally to form an ad hoc committee composed of President Steven Drouin and Trustee Christiaan VandenHeuvel to work with ACOE ahead of the full board’s consideration of candidates.
Under the county office’s proposed timeline, the board is poised to select the district’s next superintendent in June. All county consultant services are set to be provided in-kind with no cost to the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District.
Meanwhile, Acting Superintendent Michelle Pechette sits at the helm in the wake of Torie Gibson’s sudden departure by mutual separation Feb. 6. The board initially explored the idea of hiring an interim superintendent to lead during the recruitment phase, but ultimately opted against it.
By selecting ACOE at the March 24 regular meeting, the board turned down proposals by private search firms Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates and McPherson & Jacobson, LLC.
“They’re accountable to this county,” VandenHeuvel said about ACOE. “I think they know us — they know the community — in a way that I think a national vendor might not know us as well. And I think that kind of accountability, that kind of transparency, is what this process could benefit from.”
The process kicks off with direction from the board on their priorities in seeking and evaluating a superintendent, according to the ACOE proposal submitted by the agency’s deputy chief of strategic projects Jody Talkington and chief of human resources Cynthia Jenkins.
Talkington and Jenkins propose community input as the next step.
“The district is already in the midst of a highly engaged conversation about leadership needs and direction,” they added, given the district’s superintendent search two years ago followed by recent stakeholder engagement over budget prioritization.
“This allows us to move efficiently without starting from scratch. At the same time, given the outcome of the previous hire, it is important that this process be both reflective and forward-looking,” Talkington and Jenkins said.
Although the county’s role in supporting a superintendent search is a new function for the organization, ACOE garnered support from all trustees.
“This is perhaps the most important decision that we have to do as a board,” Drouin said of selecting a superintendent. “That being the case … the proposal from the county office of education hit everything that I was looking for.”
Three of the five trustees were on the board that hired Gibson out of Amador County to be superintendent less than two years ago.
The county has incentive in helping LVJUSD find a successful superintendent, Drouin added. Proposals from other firms were quoted at $35,000 and not-to-exceed $30,400 for a non-comprehensive offer.
“Even subtracting cost and looking at the package that the county office is providing us, it’s a pretty darn good package. And then if you add in the cost, it is a very good package,” he said.
The scope of ACOE’s support was proposed to include the co-development of recruitment materials as well as facilitation of all planning sessions and closed board sessions during the selection and interview process.
“This investment reflects ACOE’s commitment to strengthening local governance and leadership capacity in districts across Alameda County,” Talkington and Jenkins wrote.
Talkington is set to work as the lead facilitator for the initiative and project manager for the planning process. Jenkins will serve as the human resources lead.
“ACOE is well-equipped,” Trustee Craig Bueno added. “They have oversight over every educational district in the county.”
The community’s trust in the selection process is paramount, VandenHeuvel said.
“I think that Alameda County Office of Education is maybe a little bit more progressive than we are, where we are a little more purple,” VandenHeuvel said. “I want to make sure that the community trusts that the candidates we receive also include candidates of a range of backgrounds.”
The board can give direction on the desired range of candidates, Drouin replied, but no specific directive was expressed at the meeting for ACOE.
Upon agreeing to ACOE’s help, the board decided that an ad hoc committee would be valuable for being “nimble” in collaboration, as Bueno described.
“The ad hoc committee isn’t going rogue,” Drouin added.
The committee is proposed to represent the full board during the planning phase, participate in community engagement planning meetings, lead and participate in a community input forum and lead the selection and interview process.
According to the proposal, the full board is set to confer during facilitated closed sessions and a board retreat as well as interview candidates and select the next superintendent.
Also proposed for involvement in the process are LVJUSD director of communications and engagement Michelle Dawson and assistant superintendent of human resources Jessica Bonduris.
“My goal is to try to build the skeleton for all five (of us) to make the best choice for the students and faculty and staff and administration in our learning community,” Drouin said.
