Superintendent Candidates Interviewed

by Dave Lieben

The Ketchikan Gateway Borough School District Board of Education interviewed three candidates for the position of School Superintendent Friday. The first to be interviewed was White Cliff Elementary School Principal Larry Eklund, he was followed by Annette Island School District Superintendent Robert Pratt. Bering Strait School District Associate Superintendent Harry Martin was the last to be interviewed.

Board Member Dr. William Pfeifer was not present for the interviews. Board President Hannah Ramiskey, Board Vice-President Susan Pickrell, Board Clerk-Treasurer Dorothy Smestad and Board Member Patty Barnes all took notes as the candidates spoke. Board Member John Harrington generally leaned back in his chair, while Board Member Al Johnson drew pictures.

The candidates were all asked the same questions. The first asked the candidates to tell the Board something about themselves, on a personal rather than professional level. Eklund talked about his family, mentioning how proud he was of his two sons, one of them is graduating from the Air Force Academy this May, the other is a Law Clerk. He mentioned that his wife and father were both educators, and talked about being inspired by his father.

Pratt gave a brief life history, beginning with his birth in 1943, being raised as a "farm boy" in Fairfax, South Dakota. He worked in Leadville, Colorado, Boise, Idaho, Libby, Montana, and Klamath Falls, Oregon before moving to Metlakatla seven years ago.

Martin talked about reading about Shishmaref, which is north of Nome, in People Magazine over 15 years ago. He talked about his early days in Shishmaref, and of the adjustments he and his family had to make after moving there from Phoenix.

The second question asked how the candidate would characterize the Ketchikan School District. Pratt said he had seen turmoil, he had seen struggles with Special Education, and had read about the strike and about the recall effort against three Board members. Pratt said he saw opportunity beneath all of that. He said he felt the Superintendent needed to be a community leader, and needed good time management skills. Pratt said he was attracted to Ketchikan because he thought it had everything in place, such as excellent teachers, to be the strongest district in the state.

Martin smiled and said he had heard a lot of rumors while touring different schools in the morning. He said he could see there was declining enrollment, but had heard good things about the district academically. He said it would be easier to deal with seven members of the School Board, as opposed to the eleven in his present position.

Eklund said he thought the district was at a critical point in its development, and was reflective of the town in that it was undergoing dramatic change. He said he thought the district could play an important role in economic growth. Eklund said he was told there were 400 homes available, and that could mean 400 opportunities.

Candidates were asked about their experience working with unions, impasses in negotiations, and grievances. Martin said he was glad to say he had no experience in impasse situations. He said he had been an integral part of many negotiating teams. Martin said he had heard less than a dozen grievances, and was able to resolve them all.

Eklund said that he had dealt with grievances as Superintendent in other school districts, and that he had also negotiated contracts as Superintendent. He said he never had to go to the impasse/arbitration level.

Pratt said it had always been his job to negotiate contracts. He said it was his job not to let the situation get to the impasse/arbitration stage, and he never had. Pratt said that even though he had worked in some strong union towns, he didn't have a lot of experience with grievances.

Candidates were asked their thoughts on a strategy for lowering the dropout rate. Eklund said it was important to gather accurate data, and to find out what happened to the students who left. He said the district needed a system that nurtured student involvement, and built self-esteem.

Pratt also mentioned the importance of learning the cause of dropouts, suggesting an exit interview. He stressed the importance of teaching reading and writing skills at the lower levels. He said Revilla High School was similar to his own effort. He also mentioned that, over the objections of many, he had started a day care center in the school to make it easier for young mothers to attend school.

Martin mentioned that he had looked at test scores for Ketchikan students, which showed that test scores went up at the higher grade levels, leading him to conclude that students who had lower scores in the earlier grades were dropping out. He said he thought there might not be a short-term fix.

The next question asked candidates how they would provide a safe and secure environment for students. Pratt said it was important to have a crisis response team and a crisis response leader. He mentioned that after one of his students had committed suicide, they had brought in counselors from Ketchikan to help students.

Martin said his district had started a crisis management plan. He said they had taken a hard line against weapons, in cases where students had brought a gun to school, they had been expelled for the remainder of the school year. Martin said it was important not to tolerate assault or harassment, and that school had to be a safe place for kids.

Eklund said students needed to feel like they belong. He said his school had a four part program: Choose your attitude, be there for students, make their day, and have fun. Eklund said it was important to have emergency procedures, and to revise them as deficiencies were found.

Candidates were asked what they would do if they thought the School Board was going in the wrong direction or had set unattainable goals. Martin said he would remind the Board of their charge as a Board, and stressed the importance of working together to find a solution to problems facing the district.

Eklund said he would start with relationship-building. He said the Board needed to have a clear understanding of the problem, and that Board training should include the Superintendent. He said there needed to be an opportunity for the Board to get to know staff, students, and parents. Eklund mentioned different opinions on goals, saying some think unattainable goals should be set to keep everyone striving.

Pratt said education was a cyclical process, as the Board, students, and employees changed each year, new goals needed to be set. He said he thought that Board members should be on committees with parents and teachers.

Another question asked the candidates what their priorities for education were, given expected budget cuts. Eklund said his highest priority was to provide students with basic skills such as reading. He said social awareness was important, that education was an equalizer, providing opportunity for all. He said while it may sound redundant, "if everyone succceeds, we all succeed." Eklund said the facilities had to be reflective of the interest in children, that they couldn't expect the best from students without providing the best.

Pratt mentioned not getting a position in Park City, Utah, because being from districts where money was short, he was told "he didn't know how to spend money." He said a $1 cut in maintenance meant a $2 repair later. He said he would rather increase class size than cut classes such as Auto Mechanics. He said that, even though the teachers union would complain, he would look to sometimes use lower-paid staff in place of teachers. Pratt said he would start with the basics, and then add on what was most important.

Martin said social skills were important, but that they could be learned outside of school as well. He said learning was the most important thing, and also stressed the importance of not putting off maintenance.

The candidates were then asked if they had some questions for the Board, all of them took advantage of the opportunity, asking questions such as "What do you want from your Superintendent?", and "What should the School Board's role be in obtaining state funding?"

The canidates were then allowed to make closing statements. The Board will meet in special session at 1 p.m. today in the City Council Chambers to discuss a selection.