There are 28 candidates. That’s the number of resumes collected by Luther School Board President Matt Mohr for superintendent. One of the candidates is Barry Gunn. And two school board members want to “skip the formalities” and just hire the popular middle school principal.
Trouble is, the board agreed to follow a process for hiring the new administrator, explained Mohr. At the January meeting, the board voted to post the position at the Oklahoma State School Board Association’s website. The process would then entail reviewing candidates in executive session at the February 13 meeting to begin scheduling interviews on agreed upon top candidates. A few special meetings would then follow to work through the process of interviewing and hiring the best possible applicant by July 1, explained Mohr.
From unapproved minutes of the January meeting, the motion carried on the process of hiring the new superintendent. Charles DeFuria was the only no vote.
“Three weeks after this decision, we have two board members say ‘we don’t like that. Let’s vote on this guy.’ It’s ridiculous at best and makes it look like we are using the ‘good old boy system,'” said Mohr.
He said the board has learned its lesson in hiring without going through the process of interviewing to find the best possible candidates, referring to the backlash that ensued after Dr. Patti Buxton was hired in 2015 as Dean of Students, and who resigned after one semester. “If there’s anything we learned from the hiring of Patti Buxton is we should never again anoint someone without going through the process,” said Mohr.
Still, DeFuria and fellow board member Steven Broudy asked for the Gunn item to be placed on the February agenda. The board president and superintendent set the board agenda, but two members can co-sponsor an agenda item.
The item states: “Discuss and take action on the hiring of Barry Gunn as superintendent, effective July 1, 2017.”
DeFuria told The Luther Register, “There was never any need for the Board to advertise the position. The only legal requirement for the Board is that the person hired to be the superintendent is certified as such with SDE (Oklahoma State Department of Education). Barry Gunn is a ‘known quantity.’ When Buxton was hired, he looked good on paper and talked a good game, but you know what happened,” said DeFuria referencing current Superintendent Sheldon Buxton who announced his resignation in December.
Mohr emphasizes this isn’t about whether to hire Mr. Gunn, it’s about following the process. “I like Barry,” he said and looks forward to hearing Gunn’s vision for the district.
Mr. Gunn has popular support in the community. And this agenda item got many talking on social media. On the Luther Register’s FB page Friday, many commenters chimed in, mostly positive including one witty and timely comment, “Mr. Gunn will make Luther Schools Great Again!!”
Still, it’s the school board, not the public, that hires a superintendent. And the public votes for the school board members.
Even the school board candidate challenging Mohr in Tuesday’s election commented. Tony Rumpl said there is obvious community support for Gunn. “While talking to members of the community about the School Board election, this was brought up multiple times. I got the sense that the community really wanted Mr Gunn to be the new superintendent. I fully support the idea of hiring him as soon as possible,” he wrote on FB.
One commenter however, wondered about Mr. Gunn’s financial experience and his intentions to keep Luther students safe at school. Wrote Shari Wile, “What I would like to see in a super is someone who puts the well-being and education of our kids first. Someone who is fiscally responsible and can live on a budget. Someone who has a zero tolerance for bullying, violence and abuse. Someone who refuses to sweep that stuff under the rug. Does Mr. Gunn qualify? I know he is lovable and well-liked, is he ready to play hard ball?”
Mohr confirmed that Mr. Gunn has not been interviewed for the job, so the current board does not know his vision for LPS officially. The interview process, he emphasized, will determine Gunn’s goals. The process, he said, will reveal the best possible individual to lead Luther Public Schools without the stigma of using “the good old boy system” to get it done.
Can they do it legally? The answer is yes or maybe no.
Mohr said the school district’s legal counsel advises against approving the agenda item as it might invite an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint since the job has been advertised. However, Mohr also said OSSBA indicated the district is in the clear but should certainly follow the advise of its own counsel. There is precedent for hiring a superintendent from within, most recently with the hiring of Oklahoma City School’s superintendent.
The Gunn item is near the end of Monday’s board agenda, the item right before an executive session in which the board will review the 28 (or more) applicants for Luther’s superintendency. Mohr said he has forwarded each resume to his fellow board members to aid their preparation for Monday’s executive session. It is unknown whether any of the other applicants are from within the district.
The bulk of the open meeting will be broadcast on FB Live Monday evening at 6:30 pm.
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Love Shari Wile’s comment. Go through the process. Maybe Gunn gets hired, maybe not, but this district really needs to learn from the past and do their best to eliminate as many of those mistakes as possible. I have loved the representation of DeFuria and Broudy, but, on this, I disagree with just hiring the guy inside without looking at all options first. If he’s the guy, great but let’s take our time and make sure.
This is a rebuttal to comments made in a article in the Luther Register News (https://lutherregister.news/2017/02/12/picking-a-superintendent-not-without-controversy/).
First, no one said, “we don’t like that.” Mr. Mohr is putting words in our mouths.
Second, if putting the needs of the students and district before appearances is ridiculous then I am guilty. Comparing Mr. Gunn to the situation with the Dean of Students is a disservice to the character and years of service that Mr. Gunn has dedicated to LPS. The two situations are not relatable. Comparing Mr. Gunn’s experience and dedication to an unknown in a position with poorly defined job duties is ridiculous. Making our students wait one more day, month, or year before we start repairing the damage done in the last 3 years is ridiculous. The damage I am speaking of is the fact that we have less students, less teachers, less programs, less carry over on the budget and the students are in class less time. 3 years ago we had a new High school, new football field, new auditorium, new field house and new pre-k building since then we are unable to fix the auditorium roof. For the knowledge of the general public, the pre-k building was built without using bond funds, completely with the carryover over the building fund.
I am an elected official, it is my responsibility to listen to the opinions and concerns of the people who put me there. The overwhelming support I have seen and heard for Mr. Gunn is why I sponsored the agenda item to hire him. Maybe if the board would have learned to listen to the community we wouldn’t have experienced the fiasco of hiring a Dean of Students. The Board only learned to use a process, a process which is broken.
As far as potential EEOC actions, it is illegal for a potential employer to ask applicant if they belong to any of the protected categories. State law and our school’s policies set the precedent for hiring a Superintendent. It is well within our rights and responsibilities to stop the process and hire who we see fit as long as they hold the required certifications.
I feel our responsibility is to take action and prevent another 3 years regressing as a district.
No one in the state that we can hire will be as familiar with Luther Public Schools. The students, teachers, wants and needs, and particular financial situation are already known to Mr. Gunn. He will be able to hit the ground running and have a smaller learning curve. I want him to be empowered to make the decisions for the next school year now.
In light of the comments made by the current President of the Luther School Board, Mr. Mohr, I am giving my full support and endorsing Mr. Tony Rumpl for the seat on the Luther School Board. I am not satisfied with the direction we have been going. It is time for a change. If we keep doing things they way we always have, we will keep getting the same results .
Read STeve Broudy’s rebuttal on Concerned parents facebook page. Go Steve!!
Wow. Just read this and was like, holy smokes, 28 applicants! AND ZOIKS, my name in print. My thoughts after reading this and Mr Broudy’s and other comments are that we should go through the process as quickly as possiblr.. I hope that includes background and credit checks, checking references maybe a google search ot two. If they need people on a commitree to help speed it along, then let’s do it. It sounds like Mr Gunn has some stellar references. I believe if Mr Gunn is the best applicant for the job that wil be apparent and he will be hired.