Atascadero school district seeks input in search for superintendent
Superintendent Tom Butler announced earlier this year that he would retire at the end of the school year after 10 years with the district.
Survey will close today at 4 p.m.
– Atascadero Unified School District has started the process of hiring its next superintendent after Tom Butler announced earlier this year that he would retire at the end of the school year after 10 years with the district. The district sent an online survey, available at atasusd.org/superintendentsearch, to families, students, employees, community leaders and community members last week. The survey will close on Friday, Dec. 13 at 4 p.m.
“We take the data from the input sessions as well as the survey and triangulate it to find areas of commonality,” said Dr. Jacki Horejs, a partner in Leadership Associates, which was selected to perform the search for the next superintendent. “We use the themes which emerge from the data to develop a position description which is sent out to all applicants.”
The survey asks questions about strengths of the district, major challenges for the new superintendent, what they should know about the community, and what qualities and characteristics are important. Leadership Associates uses the data collected to develop the position description as well as to recruit and vet candidates to “ensure that they possess the required skills, experience, and expertise desired,” Horejs said.
Anyone who would like to provide oral feedback can contact Horejs at [email protected] or (408) 843-6434.
The board selected Leadership Associates, a firm based in Santa Barbara that serves districts throughout California, at its meeting on Nov. 5. The other contender for the contract was the San Luis Obispo County Office of Education. The board voted 5-1, with Trustee Corrinne Kuhnle dissenting and outgoing Trustee Teri Switzer absent.
“I think we want to have a process that really tries to find the best superintendent for our school district because as Tom Butler has been here for 10 years,” Trustee Vy Pierce said during a discussion on Nov. 5. “This is a big decision that sets the future of our district for a very long time, potentially. So I’m leaning towards going with Leadership Associates if Mrs. [Kendyl] Darnell thinks that we have the funds in order to work with them.”
Both groups gave presentations about their companies, experience and what they would do if granted the contract at the meeting on Oct. 15. The cost of the search using Leadership Associates is $25,000. SLOCOE Chief Human Resources Officer Tom Alvarez said that the cost to go with them would be $6,000.
“This is considered the most important job we have. I just don’t want to make a decision tonight and feel like we should discuss this a little bit more,” Kuhnle said on Oct. 15.
Outgoing Trustee Matt Pennon agreed with Kuhnle that selecting the superintendent is one of the most important decisions the board makes. During the decision, Pennon said that effective communication has been identified as one of the challenges of the district.
The district is putting all information about the search on its website and will update the page as the process goes on. It includes the official timeline as decided with board input during its special meeting on Nov. 19. It is expected that the board will approve the superintendent contract at its regularly scheduled board meeting on March 4, 2025.
“We saw direct communication from Leadership Associates about what they can do, what they’re going to bring to the table,” Pennon said. “As a parent, as a trustee, it’s not necessarily about the cost of this, it’s about finding the right candidates. It’s about us, as trustees, being involved. We don’t always agree on everything but I think we can agree we want the best superintendent for our district.”
