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Zeeland Public Schools Superintendent Search

Community and Staff Input

Thank you for sharing your perspective regarding the qualities, experiences, and skills that you would like to see in the district's next superintendent. The survey is being administered by the MASB Executive Search team on behalf of the district and takes about ten minutes to complete. Anonymous individual responses like yours will be combined with those from other stakeholders to provide important community input to the Board of Education as it seeks to identify the best candidate for the position. Consolidated results from all returned surveys will be reported publicly.

One important note: as you go through this survey, you will probably find that every trait and skill discussed is important to you at least to some extent. Your challenge is to help us prioritize between traits that are somewhat important for the next superintendent and those that are critically important—so try to use the full range of any scales we provide and reserve “top box” ratings for only the few items that in your mind rise above the rest.
To begin, we have just a few questions that will help us categorize your answers with other similar stakeholders in this process.
1.If you are a resident, how long have you lived in the school district?
2.How long have you worked for the school district?
3.Which type(s) of stakeholder are you? Check ALL categories below that apply to you.
4.What is the minimum level of education you want the Board to consider when evaluating candidates for the superintendent position? (Check ONE answer below.)
5.Below is a list of positions that superintendent candidates may have held in the past. Which prior positions do you think would prove most valuable for the next superintendent? (You may check up to THREE positions below.)
6.Listed below are specific areas of expertise that different superintendent candidates may possess. From your perspective, how much weight should the Board place on each area? Rate the importance of each area using the scale to the right.
Critically Important
Above Average Importance
Of Average Importance
Below Average Importance
Relatively Unimportant
Contract/labor negotiations
Facilities management
Public Relations
Budget development/management
Curriculum development and evaluation
Contract administration
Human resource management
7.Below are six different leadership style descriptions. Recognizing that a leader may employ all of these management styles in different situations and at different points in time, are there some that you think should be the dominant style for an effective superintendent? Read through the list and choose up to TWO management styles that you would like the next superintendent to employ most often.
8.Listed below are specific experiences and skill areas that could be important when evaluating the superintendent candidates. From your perspective, how much weight should the Board place on each area? Rate the importance of each area using the scale to the right.
Critically Important
Above Average Importance
Of Average Importance
Below Average Importance
Relatively Unimportant
Maintain visibility and accessibility to staff
Student First Approach
Strong knowledge of curriculum research and deployment
Successful experience working with diverse communities
Proven track record of active advocacy for public education
Maintain visibility and accessibility to students
Recognizes, values, and affirms staff members
Strong communication skills with School Board members
Strong knowledge and experience with school financial matters
Ability to develop and direct an effective management team
Excellent speaking skills with large and small groups
Experience with school bond/millage/sinking fund election and implementation efforts
Adept at media and public relations
Maintain visibility and accessibility to parents
Proven track record of raising student achievement
Already familiar with the district
Exceptional written communication skills
Demonstrated ability to work with elected officials beyond the School Board
Demonstrates a keen ability to think outside the box and develop creative solutions to complicated problems
Demonstrated responsiveness to students with learning differences
Fosters professional development of staff
Exceedingly responsive (follows through and follows up)
Maintain visibility and accessibility to the broader school district community
9.Listed below are personal characteristics that different superintendent candidates could possess. From your perspective, how much weight should the Board place on each personality characteristic when assessing each candidate? Rate the importance of each using the scale to the right.
Critically Important
Above Average Importance
Of Average Importance
Below Average Importance
Relatively Unimportant
A strong listener
Thick-skinned
Culturally competent
A problem solver
Collaborative
Inclusive
Sense of humor
Visionary
Firm
Personable
Sensitive
A risk taker
Empathetic
Goal-oriented
Kind
Resourceful
Self-reliant
A strong communicator
Flexible
Tenacious/doesn’t give up
Assertive
Approachable
Honest and ethical
Transparent
10.In choosing the next superintendent, which path or strategy below do you think the Board of Education should take? (Choose ONE answer.)
Those are all the questions we have for you. Thank you again for your willingness to provide input to this important process!
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