After several months without a Chula Vista Elementary School District Superintendent, the application period to fill this position is slated to close on Nov. 28 at midnight.
A timeline was presented at a Nov.17 district board meeting by Jason Romero, Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources, who is at the forefront of the district’s search efforts. The district employed multi-media marketing and advertising techniques to attract qualified candidates state-wide to apply.
The superintendent search committee, consisting of 23 anonymous members, will review and discuss the selection process beginning Nov. 30. Personal information such as names, pronouns and addresses of applicants will be redacted to ensure a “legitimately clear and transparent” process.
“This search committee is a mixture of parents and employees. The message has been for equity, equality, transparency and fairness,” Romero said.
A two-day revision process of all applications is scheduled to begin Dec. 7 when the committee will review and prepare questions for the first round of interviews. All interviews will be conducted over a two day period beginning Jan. 11. Discussion surrounding the selection of applicants to bring forth the CVESD board of education will occur during this time.
A second round of interviews will begin a week after committee members make their initial selection. In February, the Board of Education will move forward with an action and provide a job offer.
The Search Committee cast “a wide net” to alert leaders of the open application. Applications are available on the CVESD website. Digital Media Specialist for the CVESD, Aaron Chavez curated the design which includes a QR code that links directly to the application and community input given at town hall meetings.
According to Romero, the QR code on the flyer “overreached” it’s capacity for free messaging. “It’s a pretty good problem to have,” he said.
A list of over 1,090 standing superintendents in California all received an email advertising the position. Of that list, 483 reside in southern California and received personalized greeting cards written by Human Resources staff leadership, along with the Interim Superintendent Oscar Esquivel inviting them to apply. In order to reach standing superintendents in the state, Romero contacted the California department of education who provided a list within an hour.
“People are really paying attention to Chula Vista. I’m getting comments like ‘I know of Chula vista, we've visited before’ and ‘our dual immersion program in Merced is a Chula Vista model’. It’s great as a Chula Vista employee and resident to hear some positive things about our district.”
Although there is interest in the position from applicants, concerns surrounding the time-frame of the position's open application period lingers. “It's a mid-year opening and there are concerns if the board will be flexible about starting dates. That is a board decision,” Romero said.
Romero states they have had the opportunity to show layers of transparency in this process. “We've received many positive comments about not using a search agency. There are people who had bad luck with that. There are people who haven't had the chance because search firms have a set rule of people being selected,” Romero said. “The cost to restarting the hiring process is far less costly than hiring the wrong employee.”
