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E-mail Home > Blogs > Get on the Bus > Archives > 2008 > July > 16 > Entry
State can’t afford to advertise for superintendent?
A press release came my way Tuesday announcing that the consultant the state board of education hired to find a replacement for former state superintendent Susan Zelman is getting it’s search off the ground.
But at the top of the press release was this curious note:
“Due to state budget constraints, no classified advertisements for this position will be placed in Ohio newspapers. With this in mind, the State Board of Education would appreciate your publication covering this important news story.”
Seriously, we are to believe that Ohio is so broke it can’t afford to buy a few classified ads to try to find a strong candidate for school superintendent from within the state?
The release goes on to give a flavor of what the consultant said Ohio will be looking for in its next superintendent. The successful candidate, the release said will:
—Be “student centered” and have a strong understanding of public education, and have the desire, passion, energy and charisma to be a visible statewide advocate and “cheerleader” for public education
—Have strong administrative skills to manage a department of 650+ people and an operating budget of $11.2 billion
—Be an independent thinker capable of building consensus and possess the necessary political skills to negotiate compromise to bring together stakeholders on key education issues
—Lead and effectively build trust and confidence in Ohio’s public education system among many key groups such as citizens, local boards of educations, teachers and superintendents.
—Preferably have experience as a superintendent, but other applicants not possessing this traditional experience will be considered if they possess a strong knowledge of public education and educational reforms.
Permalink | Comments (13) | Post your comment | Categories: Schools and Politics
Comments
By blugirl
July 23, 2008 12:15 PM | Link to this
rich!!!
By Rich
July 20, 2008 11:22 PM | Link to this
Laura — You obviously don’t understand why I’m asking. It’s very simple — I want to know why the Dayton Daily News maintains the pretense of requiring an e-mail address, when obviously bogus ones are used by a few people. You’ll note, I assume, that just below the “Post your comment” button, it says this: “Your e-mail address is required.” And those last two words are in boldface. Sure, plenty of other blogs allow completely anonymous posts. But THIS one claims to demand an e-mail address. So, why do moderators allow essentially anonymous postings? Another pet peeve with several other DDN blogs (not this one) — no moderation at all. Posts appear immediately, so it’s obvious that no one looks at them first. Why maintain “approval by an administrator” is the rule, when it clearly is NOT?
By Laura
July 18, 2008 11:19 AM | Link to this
Rich: Why do you care if people use a bogus email address? I would imagine many people use a fake address to avoid being harrassed on their personal accounts and so that their right to their opinion isn’t used against them by an employer, coworker or neighbor.
By Rich
July 17, 2008 4:16 PM | Link to this
“English Teacher”, while Gov. Strickland certainly succeeded in forcing Dr. Zelman from her job, and he’d love to have his own K-12 education czar (similar to Eric Fingerhut’s role with higher education), he hasn’t yet been able to eliminate the constitutionally mandated position of supt. of public instruction. And “Calvin”, aside from the obviously serious case of Atty. Gen. Dann (which Strickland dealt with VERY rapidly), what Democratic ethical lapses are you referring to? Finally, a question I’ve posed repeatedly (to no effect) concerning DDN blogs: Why do you pretend to require an e-mail address for all items posted here, when evidently bogus addresses are allowed? Does anyone at DDN actually think that “none@none.org” is a valid address? Just asking!
By Just Had It
July 17, 2008 10:18 AM | Link to this
I agree with School Supporter & Colleen Grady. 1. What would a worth while canidate be looking in the classified adds for an executive position as a Superintentend of a school district. Anyone seen any adds for CEO’s of large companies. 2. Tell me again why we are paying a consulting firm to find a canidate?
By Calvin
July 17, 2008 7:18 AM | Link to this
As for what they do with the extra fees for teacher licensing, maybe it’s to make up for Huested’s campaign gift to veterans—no income tax and free tuition to state colleges (free of out-of-state fees). We thank you for your contributions. The new superintendent should be interesting; the dems haven’t done well in ethics so far… who will they pick…
By English Teacher
July 16, 2008 9:08 PM | Link to this
I’m confused—didn’t the Gov. eliminate the superintendent position?
By Calvin
July 16, 2008 8:50 PM | Link to this
Wow. The State (Husted) can cut the taxes for military people, I assume the base commander now retired in one friend they had in mind, and the state can invite out-of-state vets to come to college here without paying out-of-state tuition, but we can’t advertise for the open position!
By Alwazaprincess
July 16, 2008 5:54 PM | Link to this
Gee, the State Board can’t afford a classified ad??? I truly find that hard to believe. Why don’t they just take the money that they are getting from the license increase (from 60 dollars to 200)? >snicker<
By School Supporter (Classic)
July 16, 2008 4:33 PM | Link to this
Scott writes, “…buy a few classified ads to try to find a strong candidate for school superintendent from within the state…” Seriously, you don’t think every potential candidate for state superintendent in Ohio already knows there’s an opening? Next step: look for the indelible imprint of Ohio’s Democratic Party, led by Governor Ted Strickland, on the job description: No reference to the Superintendent’s first priority, fulfilling the constitutionally mandated duties of the office. Perhaps a diligent high school civics teacher might share the duties and responsibilities of the state superintendent with the Governor before the final selection is made. (Warning: Just don’t let the OEA know if you do!)
By Colleen Grady
July 16, 2008 3:40 PM | Link to this
Well, that certainly is a somewhat poorly worded press release. While it is true that you will not see the position of State Superintendent in the help wanted columns of Ohio newspapers, it doesn’t mean there will be no advertisements.There are publications other than Ohio newspapers. Advertisements will appear in both the Chronicle of Higher Education and Education Week. Both of those publications were specifically referenced during yesterday’s State Board meeting when the State Board received an update on the search.
By Riverdale Ghost
July 16, 2008 3:12 PM | Link to this
Isn’t there some kind of a legal requirement for “promulgation” (or whatever it is), which is the why and wherefore of legal ads? Seems like jobs would need “proper announcement” as well. After all, you don’t have to publish it, but given payment the advertising department would probably have to do so. They’re supposed to have money for such things.
By deb
July 16, 2008 2:17 PM | Link to this
I’m amazed that education seems to not be very important to this Gov and his administration….the man who ran on the premise that he was pro education…the same man that the Ohio Education Assoc gave Strickland its endorsement…has done NOTHING that I see as “pro-education”. So what are they doing w/ the almost $300 it now costs for teachers to renew their teaching licenses and the extra bucks that everyone else that works in the schools have to pay?????