Fast facts
› A Coleman search firm has reached out to about 700 candidates› Only about eight to 10 of those are considered serious candidates
Interim superintendent of Hamilton County Schools Dr. Kirk Kelly speaks during a District 5 Community Schools Meeting Monday, Feb. 13, 2017 at Brainerd High School. The search firm helping Hamilton County find its next superintendent says it's struggling to rally interest in the job and needs more time before presenting the board with a list of candidates.
More than a year has passed since former Superintendent Rick Smith resigned, and some school board members worry the district won't have a permanent leader by the start of school this fall.
In October, the board hired Coleman Lew and Associates Inc. for $60,000 to conduct the search. The firm was optimistic it could provide a slate of candidates by late February, but it took the board until the end of January to finalize the job description. Coleman had said it would try to have a list of candidates by the end of this month, but that isn't going to happen.
In a letter to the school board, Coleman president Ken Carrick said the "overall response/interest [in the superintendent position] has been very light."
"Based on the relatively soft level of interest we have experienced so far, I strongly anticipate that we will have to contact more than the typical number of individuals we contact on similar searches," Carrick continued.
He said the firm has reached out to about 700 potential candidates and will continue to aggressively contact people for the post. But as of Tuesday afternoon, school board chairman Steve Highlander said he was told by Coleman that there are only eight to 10 serious prospects.
Kirk Kelly has served as an interim superintendent since late April and is the only internal candidate to apply so far for the permanent position.
Highlander said he doesn't know when Coleman will present a list of candidates to the board. "That's a great question," he said.
Highlander said he's "a little disappointed" in the lack of candidates interested in the job. But the search shouldn't be rushed, he said, as "it's such an urgent need to get the right person."
The next leader of Hamilton County Schools will be tasked with helping the district regain the community's trust. The district has faced heightened scrutiny since the pool-cue rape of an Ooltewah High School freshman in December 2015. The district's also dealing with low test scores, the threat of at least two municipalities leaving the county school system, a handful of federal lawsuits and looming state intervention in its lowest performing schools.
School board member Tiffanie Robinson said she understands why some may be hesitant to look at the job, but she is determined to find strong candidates.
Robinson said she doesn't want to take the place of the firm, but is actively recruiting people for the job.
"All nine board members should be looking into their networks [for potential candidates]," Robinson said. "All nine county commissioners should be doing the same thing."
In the letter to the board, Carrick said one candidate backed out because the timing wasn't right and another because of the position's compensation.
Smith was paid nearly $200,000 a year plus benefits, and board members have signaled that they anticipate paying the next superintendent somewhere in that range.
Knox County Schools recently voted unanimously to bump Assistant Superintendent Bob Thomas to the district's top job. The board previously approved paying the superintendent between $200,000 and $240,000.
Last year, Metro Nashville Public Schools, which is significantly larger than Hamilton County and Knox County Schools, hired its new Superintendent Shawn Joseph at $285,000 annually.
Contact staff writer Kendi A. Rainwater at krainwater@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6592. Follow her on Twitter @kendi_and.