After the draft profile for a superintendent was released March 23, Austin ISD asked community members to weigh in within the next 42 hours before a specially called meeting to solidify the superintendent profile.

Board President Arati Singh said normally the board tries to have more time between having the draft of plans available to the public and the time when trustees vote on the document.

"However, we are bound to a timeline that will be beneficial for the superintendent search, so that's why we're speeding it up a little bit," Singh said.

The Austin ISD board met with GR Recruiting—the consulting firm hired by AISD to find a superintendent—and came up with a draft copy of the superintendent profile that is available for the public to review before the March 25 meeting at noon at the district’s central office, 4000 S. I-35 frontage road, Austin.

Those who would like to provide additional comments on the profile can call the AISD public comment line before March 25 to either record a message or sign up to provide in-person feedback at the meeting.

The superintendent profile is a list of about a dozen characteristics that the board and community want the new superintendent to have. Some of the qualities from the draft profile that AISD trustees and the community have tentatively decided the superintendent should have include:

• Someone who is able to lead a large organization dedicated to goals that will increase student achievement across all demographic groups;
• Someone who has demonstrated leadership and success in processes that center on equity, inclusion and diversity;
• Someone who inspires trust and models high standards of integrity and ethical behavior;
• Someone who is an effective, authentic and transparent communicator with strong listening skills and a track record of creating positive school, parent and community relations; and
• Someone who is a curious, engaged, approachable and inclusive leader.

Along with the qualities, there has been discussion on how transparent the search will be—with some wanting a completely open search and others wanting a confidential search. So far, the board has not yet made a decision as to how transparent the search will be for a superintendent.

AISD lost its previous superintendent, Stephanie Elizalde, who left the district for Dallas ISD in June. After her resignation, the district named Anthony Mays as interim superintendent, who left AISD for a Houston-area school district in December. Matias Segura was named interim superintendent in January.

After the board votes to accept the draft copy of the superintendent profile, Gloria Davis, lead associate with GR Recruiting, said the company will advertise for about a month for a superintendent. Around the end of May, trustees will select five to seven semifinalists who will be interviewed in person, Davis said.

"We're looking for sitting superintendents, people who are doing the job that the community is looking for," Davis said during a town hall meeting March 7. "We plan to hire the finalist to begin working on July 1."