The Shadow
WARM SPRINGS – Leadership qualities and a vision for the future will be important traits in Bath County’s new superintendent of schools.
Only two individuals addressed the Bath County School Board during a public hearing Thursday night on the search for a new superintendent, but they both conveyed the same message: these characteristics should be heavily weighed when selecting a successor to Dr. David Smith.
Eddie Walters of Millboro said that the selection of a new superintendent could be the most important decision the school board will make, and he said leadership qualities should be considered when selecting a new superintendent.
“Without leadership qualities, you’re only going to have a paper pusher,” Walters said. “Without that leadership quality, who’s going to be able to distinguish the Bath County School System from any other school system?
“I hope we can find somebody,” Walters said. “We do too,” replied Bath County School Board Chairman Eddie Ryder.
Long-time educator Cliff Gilchrest cited excerpts from a book called Pygmalion in the Classroom.
“If children sense that you have high expectations of them, they are going to succeed – sometimes beyond your wildest expectations,” he said.
Gilchrest, who retired after teaching for 38 years, including 25 in Bath County, said current educational trends such as Standards of Learning testing and the federal No Child Left Behind program have restricted and inhibited creativity in the classroom.
“It takes a truly creative, resourceful and communicative individual to overcome some of those obstacles,” he said.
Gilchrest added that a new superintendent should have an open door policy where he is always available to staff.
“I think it’s critically important that everyone on the staff recognizes that they are valued by their leader,” he said.
Thursday marked the deadline for returning surveys to school officials on qualities most desired in a new superintendent.
Those areas included in the survey included education and training, leadership and management skills, personal characteristics, importance in the relationship between the superintendent and school board, relations with staff, community relations, school finances and areas of expertise.
Between 75 and 100 surveys were returned to school officials, Patsy Chestnut, the contact person in the school administration office during the superintendent’s search, said Thursday night.
Between Jan. 18 and Feb. 12, the school board will receive applications for the position, while candidate interviews will be conducted in March and April.
School board members said they will consider the data from the surveys and Thursday’s comments during the selection process.
“I’ve heard some very similar suggestions,” said Millboro school board member Dreama Burns. “They were heartfelt. What you said, I will take to heart.”
“I think they have given us some deep thoughts to think about,” added Barbara Waldeck.
Bath County’s new superintendent of schools will succeed Dr. Smith, who will leave his post at the end of the current fiscal year on June 30.
Dr. Smith has served as superintendent of Bath County Public Schools since 1999.
