{"id":1189,"date":"2007-02-01T14:00:00","date_gmt":"2007-02-01T20:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/02\/lcps-district-5-board-member-defends-tenure-challengers-say-new-leadership-is-needed\/"},"modified":"2007-02-01T14:00:00","modified_gmt":"2007-02-01T20:00:00","slug":"lcps-district-5-board-member-defends-tenure-challengers-say-new-leadership-is-needed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/2007\/02\/lcps-district-5-board-member-defends-tenure-challengers-say-new-leadership-is-needed\/","title":{"rendered":"LCPS District 5 board member defends tenure; challengers say new leadership is needed"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>Though her two challengers say the board hasn\u2019t effectively led the district, Las Cruces Public Schools District 5<\/a> Board Member Sharon Wooden says she and her colleagues have worked hard to involve the community and navigate through a tough time in the district. <\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Legal issues, a divided community and other problems have made that difficult, she said. <\/p>\n

Members of the public who are critical of the board don\u2019t understand what its like to be making important decisions, Wooden said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>\u201cIf I don\u2019t get re-elected, I wish these people my best, but they are going to be in for a big surprise,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The candidates seeking to replace Wooden are political newcomers David Morgan and Connie Phillips. Early voting is underway for several seats on Do\u00f1a<\/st1:placename> Ana<\/st1:placename> County<\/st1:placename><\/st1:place>\u2019s three school boards, and polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Feb. 6. The new board members will take office at the beginning of March.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

In Las Cruces<\/st1:city><\/st1:place>, the focus of the election has been the district\u2019s inability to find a match for the superintendent job since former Superintendent Jesse Gonzales left amid scandal in 2001. Following national searches, the board has hired two superintendents since then, but both \u2013 Louis Martinez and Sonia Diaz \u2013 were chased out by controversy and, instead of healing, wounds from Gonzales\u2019 controversial tenure have grown.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Though Morgan was more critical than Phillips, both said during interviews that board members haven\u2019t effectively worked together, and said that hasn\u2019t helped attempts to heal wounds in the district and find stability.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Morgan said he realizes there is a long, deep history of hurt from the tenures of the past three superintendents. He said the board has exacerbated the problems by not genuinely listening to the community and responding to its concerns.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cWe are on an incredibly long losing streak,\u201d Morgan said. \u201cYou have to be able to enable some open dialogue. The current board seeks input, then doesn\u2019t heed it. \u2026 People are just really feeling disenfranchised by the system and the folks.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Phillips said finding the right superintendent might help board members work more effectively together.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIf we can get someone in there who can get the board members to work together, then we can stabilize the district,\u201d Phillips said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Compromise and teamwork<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Phillips said it is difficult to answer the question of how to heal wounds in the district so it can move forward.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems to me that we need to just focus on the children. There have been so many decisions based on power struggles and who gets their way,\u201d she said. \u201cIt may be easier said than done, but it\u2019s important.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Wooden said the board does have to take an honest look at what it can do \u201cto make sure that people have the input that they want.\u201d But she spoke at length about balancing the public\u2019s desire to be involved and know what\u2019s going on with privacy laws that hamper some of what the board can do and what information it can release.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

She talked about the difficulty of communicating with the community when privacy laws are involved, and said that, in some ways, it\u2019s unfortunate that the public isn\u2019t entitled to know more about personnel decisions.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Wooden said the community needs to be aware that no candidate will be perfect \u2013 all will have drawbacks.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIs it more important to have someone that gets along with everybody but they don\u2019t do anything, or someone who does a lot and upsets everyone in the process?\u201d Wooden asked.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The answer, she said, should be somewhere in the middle \u2013 in compromise.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cIt means give a little, take a little,\u201d Wooden said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u2018We need a leader, not a manager\u2019<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The board plans to hire an interim superintendent in the coming weeks to serve until mid-2008 while the district searches for a permanent leader. Phillips and Morgan said the board should move quickly to hire a permanent superintendent who can stabilize the district.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

The next leader, Phillips said, must be able to work well with people.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cWe need a leader, not a manager, someone that knows how to move the system forward in a very positive way,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Phillips said she strongly believes the board should conduct its own search for a new superintendent without a national headhunter. She said the board should start by interviewing local candidates who understand the district\u2019s issues and culture. As an engineer, Phillips said she can bring a methodical, logical approach to the search.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very fact-based, so decisions will be made based on research and facts,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

If a local candidate can\u2019t be found, the search should be expanded to the state, then the nation, Phillips said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThe most important thing is finding the right fit,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Morgan also said the search for a permanent leader needs to move quickly.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think you need to hire a new superintendent \u2013 the right superintendent \u2013 as soon as you reasonably can,\u201d he said. \u201cThe school district needs leadership.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Genuine community involvement<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Morgan said genuine community involvement is the key to finding the right leader.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThere should be a voice, but those voices \u2013 you can\u2019t just pay lip service to that,\u201d he said. \u201cYou have to listen and heed those voices.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Morgan said he would rely heavily on input from the community and district employees.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Morgan said the search should focus on finding the person who is best qualified, no matter where he or she lives or works.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThe bottom line is that it doesn\u2019t matter where they come from as long as they are the most qualified for the job,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I see no need to narrow the search.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Wooden said it\u2019s obvious that \u201cgoing with a headhunter and a national search didn\u2019t go too well for us last time.\u201d Asked how the board should proceed with the search for a permanent superintendent, she said, \u201cRight now, I\u2019m not sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

She said she will probably favor a more homegrown search, but said the board will still have to hire a consultant to do the \u201ctremendous amount of work involved.\u201d She noted that two board members \u2013 Gene Gant and Leonel Brise\u00f1o \u2013 work full time, and the board has many other things to do in addition to finding a new superintendent.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

As to where the board should look, Wooden said she most likely favors a regional search, but said she can\u2019t really decide until other questions are addressed.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI think we need to sit down and think about what it is we want in a superintendent,\u201d Wooden said. \u201cThen we need to ask, where are we more likely to get that person?\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Addressing other issues<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Wooden, like Phillips, said the board must continue to focus on students even while it searches for a new superintendent \u2013 which makes hiring help for the superintendent search even more necessary.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cLife goes on, and I think you do have to resolve issues,\u201d Wooden said.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Phillips agreed.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThe system has to continue to move forward,\u201d she said. \u201cI think if we\u2019re good leaders the system can absolutely move forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Morgan said the district has many other issues that need addressed, but the board\u2019s primary job is to hire the superintendent.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cWithout being able to have stable leadership, you\u2019re not going to be able to effectively tackle\u2026 other issues,\u201d he said. \u201cWithout the superintendent to handle the issues of education in our community, I think that there\u2019s not much that the board can or should do.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

He said the lack of leadership has made the school district the \u201claughing stock\u201d of the state.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s humiliating. We have good people in the district doing great things,\u201d he said, adding that as long as those people are \u201crudderless,\u201d the district can\u2019t be great.<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t want to rush to hire a superintendent,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I also don\u2019t want to dawdle on this either and I regard waiting until 2008 as dawdling.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/o:p><\/p>\n

Visit Morgan\u2019s campaign Web site by clicking <\/span>here<\/a>. Visit Phillips\u2019 campaign site by clicking <\/span>here<\/a>. Wooden does not have a campaign Web site.<\/span> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Though her two challengers say the board hasn\u2019t effectively led the district, Las Cruces Public Schools District 5 Board Member Sharon Wooden says she and her colleagues have worked hard to involve the community and navigate through a tough time in the district. Legal issues, a divided community and other problems have made that difficult, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1189","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1189","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1189"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1189\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1189"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1189"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nmpolitics.net\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1189"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}