Respected superintendent turns down Clark County

Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2005 | 7:35 a.m.

San Francisco Schools Superintendent Arlene Ackerman's professional pedigree made her such an attractive candidate to be the next chief executive of the Clark County School District that she was wooed by both the official search team and an outside group of business leaders.

But neither the consultants hired by the School Board nor the Council for a Better Nevada could ultimately persuade the superintendent of California's most successful urban district to apply for the post.

Ackerman, who announced in September that she would be resigning as San Francisco's superintendent after six years, said she would have been "seriously tempted" to apply for the vacancy had she not already committed to a teaching position at Columbia University.

"It's a vastly growing district with some academic challenges that would be interesting," said Ackerman, who served four years as superintendent in Washington, D.C., before taking the helm in San Francisco. "If I was at a different stage in my life, it's certainly something I would consider."

San Francisco is the top performing urban school district in California and regularly ranks in the top five nationally.

It was hardly smooth sailing for Ackerman, though. She acknowledged that her fractious relationship with the San Francisco Board of Education motivated her decision to resign. And San Francisco narrowly averted a teachers' strike last month.

The union representing the local school district's administrators has been critical of the Council for a Better Nevada's involvement in the process, calling it an inappropriate level of interference.

Ackerman said rather than being put off by the outside business group, it indicated to her a strong level of community involvement in Clark's public schools.

"I interpreted it as they (the council) were interested in getting the best superintendent possible, and I was honored that they wanted to talk to me," she said. "The more people who are involved and vested in the process, the better.

"I didn't see the council any differently than I did other community partners I spoke with."

Even if the list of finalists includes applicants endorsed by the council, it does not diminish the School Board's ultimate authority to choose the individual it wants, Ackerman said.

"No superintendent would be confused about who his boss would be," Ackerman said. "The (school) board interviews the superintendent, but you're also interviewing the board. This is a marriage, and we both have to say, 'I do.' "

Ackerman said Clark County was not the only school district interested in her. About a dozen larger urban school systems are looking for superintendents, including Cleveland; Raleigh, N.C.; and Prince Georges, Md.

"I've gotten a phone call from each of those districts open at this point," Ackerman said.

The Council for a Better Nevada brought Ackerman to Las Vegas for a visit in October. The School Board's search team traveled to San Francisco, Ackerman said.

"Had they gotten to me a little earlier, they might have been able to convince me," said Ackerman, who will hold an endowed chair at Columbia's Teachers College and train urban school administrators to be superintendents.

"I may change my mind in the future, but not in time for this job."

Maureen Peckman, director of the Council for a Better Nevada, said the organization sought Ackerman on the advice of its own education consultant, William Ouchi, a management expert from UCLA.

"We thought she was an outstanding candidate and someone we wanted to endorse," Peckman said. "We were disappointed that she chose not to apply."

The council met with six individuals, two of whom applied for the superintendent position, Peckman said. She declined to identify the individuals, citing the confidentiality of the official search process.

"We're just a part of the process," Peckman said. "We're not trying to tell people who to hire, that's the job of the (School Board) trustees. We just put forth two people who we believed would make excellent candidates."

School Board President Larry Mason said Ackerman's name had been floated as a potential replacement for Carlos Garcia, who resigned in July to become vice president of urban markets for education giant McGraw-Hill Cos.

"She certainly has some of the qualities and skills we would be looking for," Mason said. "But I would also say we have some of those people working in our district right now, in terms of experience overseeing large numbers of students and staff."

San Francisco's enrollment of 57,000 students is about one-fifth the size of the 292,000-student Clark County School District.

The School Board hired consultants -- and former district administrators -- Bob McCord and Kathy Harney to oversee the superintendent search. Only McCord and Harney know the identities of the 39 applicants. The names of the six finalists will not be made public until 48 hours before the board begins interviews Jan. 9.

At least one potential candidate has withdrawn his name from the pool -- Agustin Orci, the district's interim co-superintendent.

Orci said Tuesday he had decided not to apply for the superintendent position because he was convinced the School Board intended to focus on outside candidates. While his contract calls for him to return to his prior position of deputy superintendent of instruction June 30, he said he has not ruled out looking for a new job.

"I will do everything I can to ensure a smooth transition," said Orci, who is in his 26th year with Clark County. "There is no rancor or anything like that."

Interim Superintendent Walt Rulffes is believed to still be in contention for the permanent position. He has steadfastly declined to discuss whether he applied.

In addition to meeting regularly with the School Board to determine its search criteria, Harney and McCord have met with community leaders and held focus groups to gather additional input. The Council for a Better Nevada was one of the 45 groups, McCord said.

"We've talked with parent groups, student groups, individuals," McCord said. "It has provided all kinds of reflection that has helped inform the search process."

Of the 39 applicants, none indicated directly to him that he or she had met with the council, McCord said. He declined to say whether the council had offered any recommendations.

The consultants were allocated a budget of up to $90,000 for the search, and the School Board authorized a salary for the superintendent starting at $290,000.

University Chancellor Jim Rogers, a founding member of the Council for a Better Nevada and owner of Sunbelt Communications, has offered to raise money to increase the superintendent's salary to $400,000.

Tim Quinn, who oversees the Los Angeles-based Broad Foundation's superintendents academy, a training program for urban school administrators, said not using consultants for a search can have "a significant impact on the quality of the people the board will have the opportunity to speak with."

Because many potential applicants are already employed, confidentiality is essential, Quinn said.

"There are many people who might want the opportunity to be candidates, but aren't interested in having their names exposed as individuals the School Board didn't even choose to interview," Quinn said. "The consultants collect the information and keep it private -- that's far more attractive from the standpoint of the candidates."

In 2004 Nevada's Board of Education chose to handle its own search for a new superintendent of public instruction, forgoing hiring an outside firm at an estimated $50,000. That decision meant applications were mailed directly to the state Education Department and shared with the board members and the public at the same open meeting.

Six applications were received. Of those, only Keith Rheault, then acting state superintendent, had prior experience in educational administration. The other applicants included a first-year elementary school teacher, two high school teachers and a community college instructor who failed to meet the minimum degree requirements.

There was only a brief review of the applications and no interviews were conducted before Rheault, who had been publicly favored by several board members, was chosen.

Emily Richmond can be reached at 259-8829 or at emily@lasvegassun.com.