The three most influential positions in the city are police commissioner, mayor and school superintendent. The process for the first two was decided by the voters and an appointed selection committee. Now the taxpayers of the city are faced with a traditional or non traditional process to select the best candidate as their new superintendent of schools.
After the criteria are established for the candidates, the Board of Education members will in most cases hire an outside agency to conduct the screening process of all candidates. Whatever the process, the Board makes the final decision. This has been the procedure for many years, not only in Pittsburgh but across the nation. Because some Board members are not totally knowledgeable about all the other ingredients that make schools work, they sometime choose the wrong educator, or one that has to be terminated before the end of the contract. Longevity is the key to making urban school districts improve and stay improved for a substantial period of time.
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