Editorial: Take time to get the right one

Monday, Dec. 20, 1999 | 8:51 a.m.

This Tuesday the School Board was scheduled to select a new superintendent for the Clark County School District, but in a stunning development on Friday, the two finalists for this post dropped out. Retired U.S. Air Force Lt. Gen. Joseph Redden reportedly took his name out of consideration because of family concerns. Henry Marockie, the state superintendent of schools in West Virginia, withdrew after questions had been raised about his veracity. Initially Marockie told School Board members during his interview that he currently was making $146,000 a year, but the reality was he wasn't making anywhere near this, inflating his salary by $46,000. In addition, he claimed to be getting benefits -- a $600 monthly housing allowance and a free country club membership -- that, in fact, he wasn't receiving.

Before Friday's withdrawals, some School Board members were squirming, believing that they were being rushed to select a new superintendent. Now they must start over. One option is to appoint an interim superintendent -- a caretaker -- until another exhaustive search is done. Such a move at this time seems premature. After all, the current superintendent, Brian Cram, will remain in the job until July 2000. The School Board's predicament certainly is embarrassing -- if you count Colorado Springs Superintendent Kenneth Burnley's exit from the race on Nov. 22, three of the top five finalists withdrew their bids -- but there still is plenty of time left. The School Board should consider seriously, however, whether it wants to keep its search consultant, William Attea, whose performance hasn't lived up to expectations. For instance, it is hard to believe that t he consultant didn't first verify whether Marockie had provided the School Board with his accurate salary.

The board set an ambitious schedule to select a new superintendent by the end of this year. Deadlines are important, but this is a situation where delaying judgment for a short period won't be harmful. The Clark County School District is the eighth largest in the nation with 217,000 students. In addition to the sheer size of the district, there are daunting issues facing the superintendent, including a high dropout rate and explosive growth that requires about one school to be built every month. A decision shouldn't be rushed. The School Board should make sure it gets the right superintendent for a tough job.