Parents offer opinions on what makes an ideal school superintendent

Parents spent more than an hour listing various qualities they want in the next Laguna Beach Unified School District superintendent Tuesday night, but a few recurring threads emerged.

The district held its first public workshop to gather information that will help the school board craft questions to ask search firms, one of which will recommend candidates to replace current Supt. Sherine Smith.

Smith announced earlier this year she will leave the district in June after six years as Laguna Beach Unified’s chief administrator.

Kathy Kessler, former superintendent of the Huntington Beach City School District who has worked in education more than 40 years, facilitated the workshop, calling on parents who raised their hands while trustees listened and took notes.

Parents said the next superintendent should be approachable, an innovator, possess strong communication skills and understand both the nuances of the city and education’s governing process.

Piggybacking on the approachable quality, residents want a good listener whether it’s with parents, teachers or district staff.

“I want a superintendent who listens to teachers on what works and doesn’t work, and is willing to bend their philosophy depending what goes on in the classroom,” parent Amy Hundhausen said. “We should reward teachers with innovative ideas, even if something is not in the mainstream of thinking. Allow teachers to give input. They are the ground troops.”

Early in the session, Kessler said suggestions should be kept in context.

“We are not saying these are things that are missing,” Kessler said. “They may or not be.”

Building relationships with area businesses is also important, said parent Dan McInerny, who referred to Laguna Beach High’s partnership with Hurley that led to students creating a mural on campus.

“The more we can get engaged with local businesses sends a strong message to students to be entrepreneurial in thinking,” McInerny said.

Whether an academic initiative or a facilities project, a superintendent should be an effective planner, said Margaret Warder, a paraeducator and president of the California School Employees Assn. Laguna Beach chapter.

“They can look at a project and understand all assets and the key people needed,” Warder said, likening the process to developing a business plan.

She suggested someone “who can sit down with a team and put together a process…and get a lot of feedback every step of the way.”

This was the first of several opportunities for the public to participate in the search process.

The board will interview search firms at a special meeting Nov. 2, district Human Resources and Communication Director Leisa Winston wrote in an email.

“The district expects the search firm to provide several opportunities and methods to gather stakeholder input,” Winston said.