Finding new Clayton school superintendent to be costly

Clayton County taxpayers may have to pay from $7,500 to $95,000 for a search firm to find a new superintendent.

Six firms submitted proposals to help find a leader for the nation’s only unaccredited school district. The board will vote on a firm Tuesday.

The companies all promise to advertise the position, recruit candidates from across the nation and help negotiate a contract for the 50,000-student district.

The search comes as the school system is preparing for a return visit from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in April. The district must meet nine improvement mandates, including hiring a permanent superintendent, to regain accreditation.

“They need to demonstrate they are fully engaged in the process [to find a superintendent],” SACS’ president and chief executive officer Mark A. Elgart said Thursday.

If not successful, the district would need to start the accreditation process from the beginning, which could take about three years.

Superintendent John Thompson, whose 14-month contract expires June 30, has said he may apply for the position.

Proposals were submitted by:

• Marietta law firm Brock Clay, which is asking for $7,500 plus expenses. The firm, which is led by former Clayton accreditation attorney Glenn Brock, has conducted superintendent searches for Fulton, Cobb, Cherokee and Muscogee counties.
• The Hollins Group in Chicago, which is asking for $25,000 plus expenses. The firm brought Superintendent Beverly Hall to Atlanta Public Schools. Hall was named the nation’s top superintendent last week.
• PROACT Search, of Wilmette, Ill., wants $25,000 plus expenses. The firm brought Thompson to Pittsburgh schools in 2000.
• Ray and Associates, of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is asking for $20,500 plus expenses. The firm found superintendents for school systems in Memphis, Charlotte-Mecklenburg and Duval County (Fla.), the nation’s only other school system to lose accreditation in the last 40 years.
• McPherson and Jackson, of Omaha, is asking for $25,000 plus expenses. The firm says it has conducted more than 300 superintendent searches, with the largest being in Allentown, Pa., which has about 18,500 students.
• Sam Communications in Corona, Calif., is asking for 33.3 percent of the superintendent’s first year compensation package plus expenses. Thompson’s annual salary is $285,000, but his package is worth about $400,000. The company did not list any prior superintendent searches.