John Schultz, the superintendent of Edina Public Schools, recently announced his intent to retire at the end of the 2020-21 school year. Schultz is leaving one year into his three-year contract. This follows the departure of Assistant Superintendent Bryan Bass in 2020. Dr. Bass accepted the position of president of De La Salle High School in Minneapolis.
The Edina School Board is mounting a search for Schultz’ replacement. They have contracted with a superintendent search firm, School Exec Connect, which counts former Edina Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Dragseth as one of its consultants.
The school board also sent out an email to some members of the community sharing a Superintendent Search Survey. It is not clear that the school board email went to everyone in Edina. However, the survey is open to all Edina residents. The purpose is to determine the challenges, strengths, and goals of the district, and what characteristics or skills are important in a superintendent. The survey closes Thursday, March 4.
Edina Public Schools announced that 20 focus groups will be conducted. “They are designed to be inclusive of all district voices, representing our diverse demographics, all school age levels and programs, students, parents, employees and community.” Participants for employee, parent and student focus groups were selected using a randomized process and notified by email invitation earlier this week.
If you would like to participate in a focus group and did not receive an invitation by Tuesday, Feb. 23, please click on this link to enter a lottery for the open community forum focus group on Wednesday, March 3, from 6:30 to 7:15 pm.