Following the departures of both former Superintendent Don Austin and Interim Superintendent Trent Bahadursingh, the board of education is searching for a new leader, a process that has sparked debate among community members over transparency and potential conflicts of interest.
The Board and Austin reached what board President Shounak Dharap called a mutual agreement to end Austin’s tenure as superintendent at its Feb. 11 meeting with Austin taking the role of Superintendent Emeritus through June 30. Bahadursingh, the district’s Deputy Superintendent at the time, took the role of acting superintendent while the district began the search for a permanent replacement.
However, following a board meeting on March 17, Bahadursingh also agreed to a mutual separation from the district, according to a message from Dharap. The board has since appointed Director of Certificated Human Resources, Herb Espiritu, as the third Acting Superintendent in less than two months. Espiritu’s term will expire on April 21.
Board Vice President Rowena Chiu said although an official timeline for a permanent superintendent has not been made, the board wanted someone to replace Bahadursingh during the search process.
“The plan is to spend this month looking for an interim superintendent,” Chiu said. “The interim will be in place for a while, and the hope is that we can use the search firms to put a permanent superintendent in place by the beginning of next year.”
The district is expected to continue discussions about the superintendent search at the upcoming April 21 board meeting, where officials will determine the timeline for selecting a permanent replacement for Espiritu.
Lynette White, the district’s public information officer who said she was answering questions on behalf of Bahadursingh, said a superintendent search is usually done collaboratively between the Board and search firms.
“The Board hires the superintendent and determines the process. District staff will take direction from the Board on any support or assistance needed,” White said.
Chiu said the board voted for solicitation – where district leaders reach out to a small number of firms – in favor of a Request for Proposal (RFP) – a structured and open process where firms submit applications – and has found three search firms willing to present as part of the superintendent selection process.
“These three firms will give us presentations, and then we will choose one of the three firms to work with,” Chiu said. “Once we’ve chosen a firm to work with, the firm will give us a list of candidates, and we will interview each one before choosing a superintendent.”
Though the details of the process are still being finalized, Chiu said community voice in the process is important.
“It was mentioned in the last regular board meeting that we would be holding a special meeting in the evening specifically so that we can get the input of students and community members,” Chiu said. “I hope that students and community members will come and speak.”
Despite these plans, community members like John Craig have concerns about a lack of transparency in the negotiated agreements for Austin and Bahadursingh’s and what he says are conflicts of interest related to Bahadursingh’s appointment as interim superintendent.
In a March 11th letter to community members that signed a petition to fire Don Austin, Craig said Bahadursingh was appointed during a closed session special meeting, which reduced transparency and limited consideration of other candidates.
He also said Bahadursingh has worked with Austin at SimpleWins, a for-profit leadership consulting firm created by Austin, and expressed concern over Bahadursingh pushing for a less formal and less transparent solicitation process instead of a standard RFP, which would be more open to the public.
White leaders, however, said these concerns are being addressed through the transition process.
“(Bahadursingh) has publicly stated and gone on record that he has no aspirations to be the permanent superintendent,” White said. “He takes on the roles and responsibilities of the superintendent while serving in this temporary role.”
As district leaders addressed concerns about the transition, students and parents have turned their attention to the qualities they hope the next superintendent will have.
Sophomore Mathias Sommer said he hopes the focus will be on expanding support for athletics.
“I think that the new superintendent should do more stuff for sports because some parents cannot pay for the donations,” Sommer said.
Freshman Sayan Singh called for a student-centered academic approach.
“I’m looking for a superintendent who allows students to do what they want in academics,” Singh said. “There’s all these restrictions on what courses you can take in certain years, and if (they) could remove that, that would be great.”
Sampson Shen, a PAUSD parent, said he hopes the superintendent understands the role of a public servant.
“What I’m looking for the most is a person who has students’ interests at heart and not just a bureaucrat looking to enrich themselves,” Shen said. “I do not want somebody who treats the district as a stepping stone to higher ambition. We are Palo Alto, one of the best school districts, and are fully able to attract premier candidates.”
And for Chiu, she has three things that matter the most to her.
“For me, the three most important factors are collaboration, empathy and transparency,” Chiu said. “People are very passionate about the things that they want, and it is important to include all of these voices. I also think it is important to understand the driving force behind this advocacy.”
