Sehome Site Council

March 01, 2005

Minutes

 

Members attending:  Polly Favinger, Maddie Stockwell, Jim Kistner, Craig Ferguson, Michelle Almy,  Julian Rondello, Bobbie Jaffe Nash, Jane Wynn

 

Members Absent:  Laura DeRose

 

Guests:  Susan Zoller, Ann Marie Hanel

 

  1. Minutes from February 8, 2005 meeting deferred until next meeting.

 

  1.  Sehome Principal Recruitment Process

Guests Susan Zoller, Deputy Superintendent of Curriculum and Interview, and Ann Marie Hanel, Executive Director, facilitated a discussion with site council members on the process of recruitment for a Sehome Principal due to the retirement of Jim Kistner.  They stressed the importance of the Sehome Site Council in the process as a “clearing house” for staff members, parents, and students on the interview team. 

 

1.       Principal Job Vacancy posted for worldwide search beginning February 7, 2005.  Announcement will close at noon on Friday, March 25, 2005 (six weeks advertising). 

 

2.      The candidates for principal will be arranged in two read files which will be screened by Susan Zoller and Ann Marie Hanel for minimum qualifications.  Depending upon the applicant pool, 5 to 15 candidates could be selected for reference checks.  Of those, 4/5/6 will be brought in for interviews. 

 

3.      Thursday and Friday, April 21 and 22 have been set aside for a grueling four part interviews.  The principal candidates will each rotate through the four parts: 

 

Ø      Formal Group Interview – Members of the selected interview committee will each pose the same prepared questions to each candidate.  Susan Zoller stressed that group interview is critical to the Superintendent’s final selection.

 

Ø      Private informal interviews with Superintendent Dale Kinsley

 

Ø      Timed Written Performance – Each candidate will be given real life incidences to responded to on computer or on yellow pad.

 

Ø      Tour of Sehome High School facility. 

 

4.      The interview team debriefs the candidates’ strengths and weaknesses.  The team does not make any selection.  The Superintendent makes the final selection. 

 

5.      Final candidate selected and public announcement made, preferably before school is out in June, to facilitate a smooth transition between old and new principals. 

 

  1. Composition of Interview Committee – very important roll in process for site council.  The committee is composed of persons from broad groups so all voices are heard.  They are part of the hiring process for the whole district not just an individual school.  The committee will be composed of approximately 20 members to include:

                        Students from any of Bellingham’s High Schools

                        Certified and classified staff members

                        Central office personnel

                        Parents

                        Community members

 

Site Council is tasked to help build the interview team.  Submit names by email directly to Polly Flavinger by the end of March. 

 

  1. Site Council brainstormed input for 20-25 questions to be posed by Interview Committee to the candidates.

1.      What are you really proud of at Sehome?

2.      What professional skills should we be looking for in a principal?

3.      What personal qualities should a principal have?

4.      What other “needs” are there?

 

  1. Principal’s Report: 

Asked site council to review three Above Baseline NERC Funding Level Budget requests and rank in importance.  Items for funding were: 

ü           $2,400.00   Kiln for Art Department

ü      .    $5.033.00   Speakers for gymnasium

ü           $   900.00   Books for English Department

 

All three items deemed equally important and Mr. Kisner would submit them all for possible funding. 

 

  1. Due to time constraints and importance of Principal Recruitment, remainder of agenda saved until next Site Council meeting on March 22, 2005. 

 

  1. Meeting adjourned at 4:10 pm.

 

Respectively submitted by Jane Wynn*