A good many local residents were surprised by the recent news that Clarendon ISD Superintendent Monty Hysinger had been named as the lone finalist for the top job at Dumas ISD. The Amarillo Globe-News posted that news online Wednesday night, October 29, and the Enterprise followed the next morning on ClarendonLive.com.
No one begrudges Mr. Hysinger what is certainly a step up to a larger school with no doubt better pay and benefits that CISD can afford. Some observers, your editor included, had wondered if Mr. Hysinger might make a move soon given that he’s had a long tenure here – almost 16 years – and his youngest child is about to graduate from Clarendon High School.
The announcement in the middle of the school year was a bit of a surprise however; and the veil of secrecy employed by the Dumas Board of Trustees, while a common tactic across the state, is a method we hope the Clarendon school board will not follow.
In the search for a new superintendent, Texas law requires school districts to name finalists at least 21 days before a final vote to hire someone. Encouraged by the all-wise Texas Association of School Boards, many school districts keep their superintendent candidates hidden from public view by naming just one finalist, who then not surprisingly gets hired 21 days later.
Compare this to the process used by Clarendon College when selecting a president. In the hiring of former presidents Myles Shelton and Phil Shirley and current president Robert Riza, the Board of Regents appointed a committee of citizens and board members to wade through dozens of applications. The committee narrowed that field to three to five candidates, each of whom were brought in for a public reception and interview before being privately interviewed in closed session by the full board. Later, the board met again to make its final decision.
The college’s process demonstrates the importance of community interaction necessary for a successful college president. It also shows a healthy respect for the input from citizens and taxpayers in choosing the person who will lead one of the community’s largest groups of employees and a cornerstone of our economy.
Surely the superintendent of Clarendon ISD is on the same level of importance to our community as our college president. He or she will hold great influence of the livelihoods of dozens of citizens and – more importantly – chart the course of the education system that will mold the young minds that are the future of this city. You, as a parent and/or taxpayer, have a high stake and interest in who the Board of Trustees will chose to succeed Monty Hysinger, and every member of our school board has a duty to conduct school business as openly as possible… regardless of the prevailing veil of secrecy in our state.
We will soon know how our trustees will handle this situation. The board is scheduled to meet tonight (November 13) and three agenda items are directly related to the expected January departure of Mr. Hysinger. In his monthly report, the superintendent will discuss setting a called meeting to name an interim superintendent; and then later, the Executive Director of the Region 16 Education Service Center, John Bass, will discuss the superintendent search process and the naming of an interim superintendent. Mr. Bass’ comments are listed under “Personnel,” which often means a board will discuss that topic in closed session, away from the eyes and ears of the public.
We hope the CISD board bucks the state norm and sets a high bar for public involvement. Clarendon College has successfully done that, and it’s not unheard of for a Texas school to do it. The Beaumont Enterprise on Monday said many residents of Beaumont ISD want their board to follow the lead of the Austin Independent School District, which will narrow its own list of superintendent finalists next month and then “hold a public forum at which the community is invited to question the finalists.”
The paper quotes Austin ISD board president Vincent Torres as saying, “We’re hoping by giving them an opportunity at the end here to weigh in on who we have narrowed the field down to we’ll at least have some indication of how well they will be received and supported by the community.”
It all comes down to government transparency. The public has a right to know who is being considered to run our school. We are depending on the school board to include the public in the process and conduct this search in the light of day. We don’t need the names of every applicant, but we deserve to know who the top candidates (plural) are for the job.
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