What qualities do you want in the next CHCCS superintendent?

This Sunday The Chapel Hill News launches a weekly series asking Chapel Hill-Carrboro community members what qualities they want in a new superintendent. We'd like to know what you think and invite you to tell us in letters to the editor at editor@nando.com or in blog comments here (but please add your name if you your comments considered for publication in the print newspaper.)

Correspondent Maria Magher will have a report from last night's city school board meeting in Sunday's edition, as well as the first of our mini-interviews. Here is an excerpt from her story.

Experience and a record of proven success are the top qualities needed in a new superintendent, members of the community and the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school board agree.

Allison Schafer of the N.C. School Boards Association, the firm hired to conduct the superintendent search, presented the board Thursday night with the findings of surveys completed by members of the community and district staff. There were 981 completed community surveys, and 299 completed staff surveys.

Out of 14 listed qualifications, “experience as a superintendent with a proven record of success” was identified as the most important qualification in the community surveys, and “experience as a classroom teacher” was named the top qualification by staff. Both survey groups identified experience with budgets and financial management as the second-most important quality.

When asked to identify qualities for their top candidates for superintendent, members of the board also named experience as a priority.

“The ideal candidate will have  a proven record of success,” said board member Mia Burroughs. She specifically identified experience in the classroom, experience leading large numbers of staff and being able to articulate how solutions were implemented using data-driven evidence as essential.

Surveys by both the community and the staff identified the top characteristics desired in a superintendent as “inspires trust, has high levels of self-confidence and optimism, and models high standards of integrity and personal performance.” The survey included 27 categories of characteristics.

Schafer and the NCSBA took note of all the feedback provided by the board in order to create a rubric by which to evaluate candidates once interviewing begins. The application period will close Jan. 31. Board members will meet in closed session in February to review applications and choose candidates to interview.

Look for the full story in Sunday's Chapel Hill News.