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Santa Clara Unified Selects Firm for Superintendent Search

It won’t be long now until Santa Clara Unified School District will have to say goodbye to Superintendent Dr. Gary Waddell. Dr. Waddell is retiring at the end of the school year but before the Board can pick who will fill his shoes, they had to first pick the firm for this important search.

The Board interviewed three firms at their special meeting on Thursday, Jan. 16: Alma Advisory Group; HYA, Inc.; and McPherson & Jacobson LLC. The selected firm will help the District search for the new Superintendent, but of course, the hiring decision is in the hands of the Board.

After almost four hours of presentations and discussion, the Board was torn between HYA, Inc. and McPherson & Jacobson LLC. Board members especially liked that both firms had experience in California. Most of the Board was leaning towards HYA, Inc. Board President Bonnie Lieberman specifically liked how they would engage the community prior to recruiting and that they provide a private portal. Board Member Kathy Watanabe and Board Clerk Jim Canova were leaning towards McPherson & Jacobson LLC. Canova liked that the District had history a consultant who would help with the search.

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In the end, the Board voted 5-2 to hire HYA, Inc. to search for the next Superintendent. Watanabe and Canova voted no.

HYA, Inc., which stands for Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, has 35 years of experience and has done over 1,600 searches. When they start the search, HYA, Inc. will meet with the community and stakeholders in person and online as well as do surveys. Additionally, they will work with the Board to create a leadership profile to inform their search. They also have an active website where they will list the Superintendent job opening. When the search is complete and the new Superintendent is hired, they can also help with the transition phase. Their consulting fee for the search is $39,000.

The Santa Clara Unified Board meets next on Thursday, Jan. 23. Meetings are live-streamed on the District’s YouTube page, and agendas are posted on their website.

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