Douglas County School Board fails to offer interim superintendent the permanent spot
Submitted by Jeff Munson on Thu, 04/11/2024 - 6:24pm
The Douglas County School District Board of Trustees continued its 4-3 divisive vote this week as has been commonplace on many agenda items. The trustees had two items on the agenda that addressed the job of the superintendent, one was to hire interim Superintendent Jeanne Dwyer, and the other was to not hire her for the permanent spot and instead go through a process to evaluate the 13 applications they received after the previous deadline.
It was continuous, as has been the norm for the last 16 months of meetings since the last election when David Burns, Susan Jansen, Katherine Dickerson, and Doug Englekirk were elected. Often it is those four on one side, with Linda Gilkerson, Carey Kangas, and Yvonne Wagstaff on the other.
During a previous meeting, the board violated the Open Meeting Law and voted to hire Dwyer as the permanent superintendent but it was not agendized. Burns, Dickerson, and Englekirk said they changed their mind with Burns saying he was "blindsided" made his decision in haste, and "regretted his decision."
Due to that violation, the item was brought back and put on the agenda.
The motion to hire Dwyer was made, and seconded, but the discussion soon turned into an uncomfortable dialog. Dickerson said she wanted to give all of those "standing in line" a chance to be heard in the hiring process, saying it was "only fair."
Kangas said Dwyer continues to prove daily how she can lead and she "has earned her a chance to lead this district, has knowledge of the district, good relationships, is open and honest."
He said Dwyer has kept emotions in check while dealing with a great deal of adversity.
"Let's join together as a board and show solidarity to make Mrs. Dwyer our next superintendent," said Kangas.
Gilkerson said, "Our constituents and the public, teachers, and students need to understand, if you're not going to vote for Jeanne, tell them why."
Dwyer has been covering three full-time jobs since taking on the superintendent job with the departure of Keith Lewis.
Englekirk asked Dwyer if she would be willing to apply for the job she had been filling.
"No, I would not," said Dwyer, stating she'd already been doing the job application. She said she stepped up to take on the job after Lewis left in a district full of unrest, and "this board is so dysfunctional." Dwyer said she has been doing the job while also being the director of inclusive education and human resources, and now as board clerk.
"I care so much about Douglas County School District that I'm doing these things, the extra jobs," said Dwyer. The staff appreciates and supports her, and believes the district is getting back on the right track.
"I've been willing to sit here and work with you, and keep coming to work every day," said Dwyer, mentioning sitting through the difficult board meetings has been tough. "I have devoted my heart and my soul to Douglas County School District because I care so much."
The board voted 3-4 to appoint Dwyer the permanent superintendent, thus moving the agenda to the hiring process for a new person at the helm.
There were 13 applications received after the Jan. 6, 2024 deadline, with one of them backing out of the process and four not meeting the minimum qualifications.
The board voted 4-3 to move forward with the process with the following deadlines:
Dwyer is being tasked to go through the eight applications, reach out to them to see if still interested in the position, as well as accept new applications, and screen them by May 3. The agenda will be posted on May 7 with the applications distributed, and the board will submit their screening reports by May 17. The results of the screenings will be attached to the agenda for the May 21 meeting. Discussions about scoring on the 21st, then the top three emerge, and background checks are conducted after that meeting.
