FARMINGTON—Davis School District Superintendent Reid Newey announced on Jan. 5 that he would be retiring at the end of the school year prompting a search for a replacement. It is the responsibility of the Board of Education to hire a new superintendent. Last week, the board held a special meeting to discuss how to proceed in finding the best candidate to lead the district.

“It was more of a brainstorming session,” said Davis School District Director of Communication & Operations, Chris Williams. “It wasn’t a business meeting so they did not make any decisions but took some good steps for a superintendent search.”

They are planning on holding three town halls to solicit public input in February, he said. “They will be at Bountiful High, Davis High and Clearfield High in the evening to give people the opportunity to come and express their thoughts about what qualification a new superintendent should have and what focus he or she should keep in mind.”

The town halls would be separate from the public comment period during a school board meeting, he said. “They’ll be a place where people can share their thoughts about what a superintendent should be. The town hall will last for about an hour to an hour and a half at each location. We’ll set up a dedicated email for parents who can’t attend so they can share their thoughts too.”

The board will also develop a packet of information for possible candidates on the district, budget, history, size, number of employees and students so they get an overall feel of what the district is, he said. “I’m not sure if that will be people in-house, outside the district or state. They expect to start interviewing in mid to late April.”

There was discussion about developing a survey as well, said Williams. “The next steps will be deciding on dates, times and locations for the town halls. If they develop a survey there will be instructions on how to participate in that.”

Once they gather public input, the board will sit down with applicants to decide who should lead the district, he said. “Nothing was said about establishing criteria. The qualifications may be in the packet. It’s pretty wide open. Last time there were various applicants. We even had someone from McDonald’s apply.”

Town halls are scheduled for Feb. 8 at Clearfield High from 7-8:30 p.m.; Feb. 10 at Davis High from 7-8:30 p.m. and Feb. 16 at Bountiful High from 7-8:30 p.m.