Candidates from small districts in running for DeKalb schools job

The three finalists in the running to lead Georgia's third-largest school system all hail from districts a fraction the size of DeKalb County's.

Tuesday, the school board announced the top contenders to be DeKalb's new superintendent. All are sitting superintendents: Gloria Davis of Decatur Public Schools in Illinois, enrollment 8,700; Arthur R. Culver of Champaign Community Unit School District No. 4 in Illinois, enrollment 8,900; and Lillie M. Cox of Hickory Public Schools in North Carolina, enrollment 5,000 students.

DeKalb County Schools has 99,000 students.

But school board Chairman Tom Bowen said the candidates share something more important than working in a large district -- they all have track records of proven academic success with diverse student populations that mirror the makeup of DeKalb.

"We looked for individuals who in the past had led big changes where they dealt with ... not necessarily redistricting but large, contentious issues," Bowen said. "All of the candidates are very good and I think the public is going to be very pleased when they see them."

The public will have a chance to meet and submit questions to the candidates at a forum at 6 p.m. Thursday at the district's Stone Mountain headquarters.

Bowen said with the exception of Davis the candidates had experience working at some level in larger districts.

For the past five years, Davis has been school chief of Decatur Public Schools, a district 40 miles east of Springfield, Ill. It's a district that is 45 percent black students and 44 percent white, according to state data. Before that, she led Dodge City Public Schools in Kansas, a district with an enrollment of 5,800.

"I think that your philosophical beliefs and background are going to drive what you do," Davis said. "You have to amass it to a larger scale in a larger school system. But first and foremost is how you conduct business, how you engage people."

Davis said she was attracted to DeKalb because of the district's desire to advance academic achievement. She stressed her ability to make collaborative decisions, a claim that was backed by Decatur, Ill., board Chairman Dan Winter, who described her as a positive and visionary leader. He praised her for improving the curriculum, installing more Advanced Placement classes and landing a sales tax referendum for school construction.

Just 50 miles east of Decatur, Ill., Arthur Culver is leading the school district in Champaign. Enrollment in the district is about 44 percent white, 38 percent black and 7 percent Hispanic.

Culver, who could not be reached for comment, is credited with guiding the district through a tense consent decree in a civil rights complaint over inequities in student achievement and resources. He's a reform-minded leader who's had success closing the achievement gap, said board Chairman Dave Tomlinson.

"My reaction is I think he'll do a good job," Tomlinson said. "I think he’s been successful in our district doing some of the same things that are going to be needed [there]."

Cox is the superintendent of a small city-run school system in Hickory, N.C., about 60 miles outside Charlotte.

Hickory school board member Sallie Johnson had nothing but praise for Cox, who has led the school system for nearly two years.

“We’d hate to lose her,” Johnson said. “She’s an amazing educator and an amazing leader. She has a way of sizing up any situation, big or small, and analyzing it and getting to the heart of it right away.”

Cox has initiated a new literacy program at the system’s four elementary schools that helps students focus on comprehension, vocabulary and pronunciation.

Contacted Tuesday, Cox said the DeKalb school board asked the candidates to withhold their comments until after Thursday.

Beth Ansley, co-president of the Jenkins Elementary School PTA in Hickory, said that in Cox’s short time as superintendent she has made a good impression on the parents.

“She’s had a tough two years because of the budget cuts, but she’s made it a point to go to every single school and meet directly with the parents and staff to explain everything to them," Ansley said.

DeKalb is looking to hire a replacement for Crawford Lewis by early April. Lewis was fired and later indicted on charges he ran a criminal enterprise in the school system.

Ernest Brown, who has three children in DeKalb schools, said he was underwhelmed by the choices, but planned to attend the public forum Thursday and listen with an open mind.

“Because of some of the challenges [urban superintendents] face, it is hard to find one that is unscathed,” he said. “The last thing we need is a superintendent with baggage.”

Staff writer Angela Tuck contributed to this article.

THE CANDIDATES

Arthur Culver: superintendent, Champaign, Ill.

Student population: 8,900

Years on the job: about nine years

Reported salary: $226,000

Other: He was previously area superintendent in Fort Bend Independent School District, a Texas district of 56,155 and superintendent in Longview, Texas, a district of approximately 9,000 students

Lillie M. Cox: superintendent, Hickory, N.C.

Student population: 5,000

Years on the job: about two

Reported salary: $150,000

Other: She is a former high school and middle school teacher, and former assistant superintendent. She was the system's first female superintendent.

Gloria Davis: superintendent, Decatur, Ill.

Student population: 8,700