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SUPERINTENDENT SEARCH UPDATE

April 10, 2020

On June 3, 2019, Sylvania Board of Education released a district update to the Sylvania community that detailed four steps for selecting a new superintendent. That update concluded: “We recognize the gravity of finding the right educational leader to fulfill our needs and pilot us toward our best future. We are committed to taking the time to do this the right way and with the input and cooperation of the Sylvania community. We appreciate your patience and your support during this exciting time for our school district.”

 

Ten months, two new board members, a staff and community survey, staff and community focus groups, three rounds of candidate interviews, a community meet and greet, and a global pandemic later, we are thrilled to announce we have reached the fourth and final step toward our promise to begin a new era in Sylvania education. The Board is excited to welcome Dr. Veronica Motley as the next superintendent of Sylvania Schools!

 

We have chosen Dr. Motley for her breadth of educational knowledge and experience, ability to concisely express ideas, and confident yet humble demeanor. Having served the educational community as a teacher, principal, director of student services, adjunct university professor, and assistant superintendent, Dr. Motley brings with her three decades of experience across several educational areas, including curriculum, assessment, training, special education, and leadership. Throughout the interview process, Dr. Motley received shining reviews from board members, administrators, and many others in our community.

 

Having successfully negotiated a contract with Dr. Motley, she will be officially hired at the next regularly-scheduled board meeting, which will be held virtually this Monday, April 13 at 5:00. Dr. Motley is excited to begin this journey, and we are excited to invite her to get to know our collaborative community of staff, students, parents, and other community members even better. Despite the highly unusual circumstances of the past month, we worked hard to keep our mission of new leadership on track. This was only possible with the patience, flexibility, and support of our staff and our community, so we thank you!

 

Sincerely,

Sylvania Board of Education

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 Monday, April 6, 2020

Despite the current pandemic, the Board has been able to move forward with the superintendent search. Last week, we met virtually with semi-finalists to determine if any of those eight professionals might be a good fit for Sylvania. We were able to narrow the field to four finalists. Our plan is to meet with these finalists in person for a second interview on April 8th.

We are also in the process of setting up a virtual “Meet and Greet” for a wide cross section of representatives from our staff and community.  They will be able to virtually access the finalists.  Although the final decision to hire the right person is that of the Board, we believe it is essential for key stakeholders to offer feedback to be used in the decision-making process. We are trying to balance safety with the necessity of hiring a leader who will be ready for the start of the 2020-2021 school year.

In doing so, we intend on keeping Ohio’s unfolding safety guidelines in mind. We will update you on the process if things change from our current plan, which could include again connecting with candidates virtually instead or even delaying interviews. We appreciate the community’s understanding, flexibility, and continued support as we continue the search for our next leader during this very unusual time.  

   
Timeline 
 January 272020   Organizational Meeting for Superintendent Search Process 
 January 30202 Announce the position statewide 
 January 312020 Post Superintendent Search Profile Questionnaire 
 February 192020 Profile Meetings with Stakeholder, Staff, and Community Focus Groups 
 February 232020 Superintendent Search Profile Questionnaire Deadline 
 February 272020BOE review of Superintendent Search Profile (Special Board Meeting) 
 January 3thru Marc16, 2020 CandidatRecruitmenPeriod 
 Marc16202 
Application Materials Deadline 
 Marc192020 Candidate Screen Meeting (Special Board Meeting)    
 April 1 anApril 22020 First Round Interviews (Special Board Meeting)  
 April 82020 Finalist Interviews for Candidates (Special Board Meeting) 
 April 132020 Regular BOE Meeting to Hire New Superintendent
August 12020 Start date of new superintendent or sooner to transition
Timeline (PDF) (RTF)