Seven consultants submit proposals for Buffalo superintendent search

How serious is the School Board search for a new superintendent? Well, the RFP the Board sent out at the end of October generated 7 responses before the cut off date of November 15.  The four-member ad hoc committee responsible for reviewing the proposals  met Tuesday this week to go over them, select the finalist to present  to the Board. But only two members showed up, so the two decided to provide all the Board members with copies. So it appears the full board will vote on the finalist. Don't forget that June is the deadline the Board expects the consultants to help them hire a candidate.
And the Board conducts the oral interviews with the educational partnership organizations (EPO) under consideration to run the persistently low achieving schools (PLA) on Monday or Tuesday December 5 or 6. The following week on December 14, the Board votes on what EPO's they sent to the State Ed in Albany. Then, there is the Christmas school break in three weeks folks return to do business in January 2012.
In the interim there is an at-large seat the Board has to fill by the first week of January or else the Mayor appoints. Central District Rep. Mary Ruth Kapsiak and Park District  and Board President Louis Petrucci both vying for the coveted seat Chris Jacobs vacates to become the new Erie County Clerk when he resigns next week.If  either Kapsiak or Petrucci picked there is a district seat that has to be filled in January or February.
And there is a school break in February 20-24, and another in April 9-13. And sometime in-between while the district waits to hear from Albany  about the status of the proposals submitted in December in the spring,  there may be time for the superintendent search.
Yet, with interim Super Amber Dixon winning a few feathers in her cap so far by successfully settling a union contract, appointing an African-American woman to a top academic post in district,  cutting down exempt employees in central office even if a few just moved over to other non-exempt union positions in City Hall, and asking the entire community to get involved in participating in choosing a school reform model whether  EPO or  a turnaround one, it leaves one wondering about the superintendent search. After all an ad hoc committee meeting didn't generate enough interest to even review the resumes of the consultants who submitted proposals to do the search.