WJCC Receives 26 Applications for Superintendent

By Amber Lester Kennedy Friday, October 22, 2010

The application period for the vacant superintendent position in Williamsburg-James City County schools has closed, and the school board will now review the 26 applications received.

WJCC schools, with the assistance of the Virginia School Board Association, posted a job vacancy ad on Sept. 20 with an application deadline of Oct. 15. The board met in a special closed session Thursday to begin reviewing the applications, which came from across the nation. A new superintendent must be selected by late December, in accordance with state code that only allows a superintendent vacancy for up to six months.

While the board will not be releasing the names of candidates, it did release some information about the applicants. Of the 26 applicants, 21 are men, five are women, 21 are white and five are minorities. Fourteen of the applicants are current or former superintendents, five are assistant or deputy superintendents, five are central office administrators and two are principals or building-level administrators.

While applications came from across the country, 10 of the applicants are currently working in Virginia. The remaining applicants hail from Alabama, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.

In its job ad, the board listed several desired characteristics, such as the ability to improve academic performance for all students and experience in managing district resources. Read the full list of criteria here.

At least one applicant is known. Acting Superintendent Scott Burckbuchler announced his intent to apply for the job in September. Burckbuchler previously served as Assistant Superintendent for Finance, but eliminated that title in May; at that time, he appointed Rene Ewing as senior director for finance. On Wednesday, the division released his proposal to restructure the leadership, including the creation of a position called “Assistant Superintendent of Administrative Services.”

The board has said the salary for the job, which oversees the education of more than 10,000 students, will be commensurate with experience. Burckbuchler is currently being compensated a salary of $150,000, plus $10,000 in car expenses.

The position was left vacant last spring when former superintendent Gary Mathews accepted a job as the superintendent of schools in Newton County, Ga.