GCSD Hopes To Hire New Superintendent By End Of December

The Glenwood Community School District plans to have its permanent superintendent hired by the end of the calendar year.

The Glenwood Community School District Board of Directors set a tentative timeline for its application and interview process for the permanent superintendent at a special meeting in September.

Nicole Kooiker was hired to serve as the district’s interim superintendent last spring. In a previous interview Kooiker said she plans to be a candidate for the permanent position.

The superintendent position is currently being advertised and is open to applicants, according to School Board President Matt Portrey.

Grundmeyer Leadership Services, the same firm the district used in the spring in the hiring of Kooiker from the Cedar Rapids School District, is also assisting in the permanent hiring process. 

Portrey said Grundmeyer will help the district establish the timeline, identify desired qualifications and conduct a survey of district and community members. They will also advertise and recruit candidates, help establish interview teams and questions, review and refine candidate list, screen semi-finalists, assist in conducting formal interviews, provide interview team feedback and debrief, assist in offer and negotiations with the selected finalist. 

The firms will also assist with the on-boarding plan for a successful transition once a candidate is hired, according to Portrey.

“We’ve detailed several qualities and skills that matter, and they are included in the survey lists,” said Portrey. “We’ll be listening to the staff’s and public’s input regarding those, and we’ll finalize an approach from there.”

Portrey went on to say the search process is not reflective of the board’s current evaluation of Kookier but rather due diligence set out months ago.

“We are simply abiding by the path we chose last spring when we stated that we would look to fill an interim position for 2024-25 due to the short time frame before the school year would begin,” Portrey said. “We also stated we would target an early hiring process this fall to be ahead of the typical hiring season as we look to put the best possible superintendent in place for Glenwood for 2025-26 and beyond.”