Superintendent Search: Update — Board Selects Finalist

Dear PAUSD:

We are pleased to share that, after sitting together for approximately 24 hours over the course of this weekend to conduct interviews and deliberations, the Board has selected a finalist in our search for the district's next superintendent. 

This would not have been possible without deep involvement by our community at every step of the way, and we'd like to take a moment to walk you through how we got here.

Earlier this year, the Board selected McPherson and Jacobson—a professional search firm—to guide the process, and together we set parameters designed to prioritize robust community engagement. In April, a community input survey was sent out, and hundreds of you responded. Listening sessions were held with staff and community members to gather input on both the search process itself and the qualities you wanted to see in our next superintendent.

From there, the search firm invited community members to apply to serve on our interview panels. Two panels were formed: a community panel and a student panel. At the May Board meeting, the search firm selected the panel members in public, by lottery, drawn from all of the applications that had been submitted. The community panel reflected a wide range of perspectives from across our district, including parents, teachers, classified staff, administrators, and students. 

The search firm received 34 applicants from diverse backgrounds across the state and country. The field was then narrowed to six candidates based on the criteria the Board had established at a prior public meeting. 

This past weekend, the panels and the Board convened in closed session, in separate rooms, to interview these candidates. On Saturday, closed session began at approximately 7:00 a.m. and ran for roughly nine hours, until about 4:00 p.m. During that time, the community panel, the student panel, and the Board each conducted lengthy interviews with the candidates. These interviews were facilitated by consultants from our search firm.

On Sunday, closed session began at approximately 7:45 a.m. and ran for roughly fifteen hours, ending just after 10:00 p.m. During that time, the panels reconvened in the morning for additional interviews, and the Board then spent the afternoon narrowing the field based on the interviews and the feedback from the panels. The Board conducted follow-up rounds of interviews with two candidates, and deliberated late into the evening. All our candidates were exceptionally qualified, and the Board worked hard to make the difficult decision of choosing one finalist.

The Board has heard the desire for stability, and for cultural reset. All five of us are confident that our finalist is the leader who can build a lasting trust and respect with our community. We have entered contract negotiations with this individual, and we look forward to introducing them to you once those negotiations are complete. The contract will appear for a vote on the June 16th open session agenda.

We’d like to thank everyone who gave their time to this process, particularly the community and student panelists who showed up and worked through long days alongside the Board. We also deeply appreciate the participation of our union leaders, Tom Culbertson and Meb Steiner, in this process. 

Your involvement shaped this choice, and it could not have been made without you.

With gratitude,

Shounak Dharap
Board President

Rowena Chiu
Board Vice-President