About 40 parents, teachers, students and community members attended the first public forum seeking input on the search process for the next superintendent of schools for Prince Edward County.

For forum, which lasted about an hour, sought to gain input from the public on the strengths of the school division and community, the challenges a new superintendent could face in the community and desired qualities and characteristics of a new school chief.

The discussion was led by Dr. Kevin Castner, a senior associate with BWP and Associates, the firm selected by the county school board to conduct the search — which will close April 20.

Among the 40 who attended the event were Dr. Peter Gur, Farmville District representative on the school board, and Prospect District Representative Darin Thomas, Longwood University President W. Taylor Reveley IV and Commonwealth’s Attorney Megan Clark. Reveley and Clark, along with Buffalo District Representative and Board Chairman Russell Dove, serve on the appointed three-member search committee.

The vacancy for school superintendent was created with Dr. David Smith announced in December that he would not seek to renew his contract, which expires on June 30.

Those in attendance identified several

strengths of the division, including the history of the community, the teachers, the untapped resource of parents, the proximity of Hampden-Sydney College and Longwood University and Centra Southside Community Hospital.

Community members said they wanted a strong communicator in the next school superintendent, an innovative person to lead the schools and a team builder.

Some concerns with the division included the dropout rate, the support of teachers and administrators, the relationship between the superintendent and the county’s board of supervisors, real-world skills for students and special education and accommodating those with special needs.

“We now have had the opportunity to talk to over 60 people in your community,” Castner said Tuesday night. “…We’re trying to assist the school board with the most important task that they’re charged (with), and that is the hiring of a new superintendent.”

He said that the forums will be part of a written record presented to the school board “which will have the words of the people in this community that would be talking about the qualities and characteristics you want to see in a superintendent, the strengths of your school system and the challenges that the new superintendent might have to be facing. It’s a very transparent process,” Castner said.

After gathering input from the community, BWP will present a draft profile to the school board, he said. “We will use that to vet candidates.”

He said the superintendent search would close April 20, and the school board, shortly after, “will receive a report from us on a recommended slate of candidates that we will recommend to them, not in any order, that we feel meet the criteria. The ones that we recommend, we will guarantee for two years, or we will do the search over at cost.”

Responding to a question from the audience about the April 20 date, he said BWP felt that the six-week time frame would be adequate. “We actually already have six applicants that have already posted before we went to the national search,” he said. “Not to have a gap in leadership was the goal of the board.”

Castner reiterated BWP’s recommendation to keep the search process confidential.

“I think one of the challenges we have here is looking at special education,” said Lt. Sonya Walker of the county sheriff’s office, “versus special needs children of our population … I would like to see a superintendent to come in and do like a needs assessment to actually see what the behaviors are in our community.”

“Many parents who are involved in the system are experts in their field,” said Heather Edwards. “I think that parents could be such a huge resource that, right now, is not quite getting maximized.”

“We’re blessed here. We’ve got a university. We’ve got a college. We’ve got a pretty extensive medical complex,” said Rucker Snead, the director of the Wilson Center for Leadership at Hampden-Sydney College. “We’re high touch and high tech, so that brings something that hasn’t been tapped yet. I think it’s something a new superintendent can really play into and can use that to his or her advantage.”

He said Prince Edward needs a superintendent who’s a leader. “He needs to be able to manage, but he’s got to be able to lead. He’s got to be able to set a vision … He’s got to be able to plan and then execute. We’re asking for an awful lot, but the potential here is huge for that person.”

An online survey seeking similar input is available online at www.pecps.k12.va.us and at the public library and at each school. The survey will close on April 7. Castner said he anticipates up to 400 responses.

The next forum on the search is Monday at 6 p.m. at the middle school.