The Tacoma School Board voted Oct. 13 on a motion to appoint Deputy Superintendent Carla Santorno to lead the district for the next 18 months effective Jan. 1, 2012. Santorno has served as the district’s deputy superintendent since fall 2009.
She would replace Superintendent Art Jarvis, who announced in June that he intended to retire following the 2011-2012 school year.
The board’s action determined that it will appoint a successor from within the school district at this time. Given the reshaping of the board in the coming election, the board has also determined that it is in the best interest of the district to appoint Santorno on a superintendent-elect (interim) basis from Jan. 1, 2012, through June 30, 2012. From July 1, 2012, through June 30, 2013, Santorno would then serve as the interim superintendent.
The determination of the length of contract offered will reflect both the interest in continuity and the opportunity for the next board to evaluate the leadership within an 18-month period, Board President Kurt Miller said. The appointment of Santorno also would come with a mandatory board review after one year.
Members of the board acknowledged the new school board members would be facing a number of challenges in their new roles that could affect their ability to do a national superintendent search at this time. Designing Santorno’s contract to be short-term allows the new board members to get acclimated while still addressing budget concerns and making progress on goals.
Board members began discussing the replacement for Superintendent Jarvis in early August. The board discussed seeking community feedback, but was unable to schedule planned community outreach because of the strike. The board received a great deal of feedback from the community and took these comments into consideration when making its decision.
In addition, Miller said, the district can take advantage of Jarvis’ 47 years of experience to advocate for Tacoma during the next legislative session in Olympia.
With the state Legislature focusing in November and again in January on issues of education funding and reform, “Art’s contacts, reputation and knowledge of the pressures facing education will ensure that Tacoma Public Schools has a powerful voice” as legislators take actions expected to have profound effects on education statewide, Miller said.
The Board of Directors hired Jarvis in August 2007 as interim superintendent after the departure of Superintendent Charles Milligan, who served the district for a year. Then, after an extensive national search process, the board named Jarvis permanent superintendent in 2008.
“During Carla’s tenure here, she has continually impressed me with her strategic thinking, her focus on academics and her approach to closing the achievement gap,” Miller said. “By making her superintendent-elect (interim), the new board members who will be sworn in this December will have a significant voice in evaluating Carla’s performance and deciding the long-term leadership direction for the district.”
During the next few months leading up to her January appointment, Santorno will work on a transition plan that calls for meeting with community groups, civic organizations and staff members throughout the district.
“I look forward to continuing my work in Tacoma. I am excited about getting up close and personal with our community and working collaboratively with the school board to build on our successes. I will work closely with our associations to accomplish a positive, productive relationship and to build trust long term. I am eager to begin the collaborative financial work that is needed to preserve programs for our children,” said Santorno. “I am committed for the long term. My husband and I feel Tacoma is our home.”
“Carla and I have had a terrific partnership, and I am very comfortable with this next phase of that partnership,” Jarvis said. “I am pleased the board wants to continue the current direction of the district. And as Carla assumes more leadership over the full operations of the district, it will be congruent with the time period when we need to be strong advocates in Olympia.”
Before coming to Tacoma, Santorno served as the chief academic officer for Seattle Public Schools for three years. Prior to that, she served in multiple roles in the Denver Public Schools system, beginning as a teacher in 1973 then later as staff developer, elementary principal and area superintendent over 34 K-12 schools.
One of the first challenges Santorno will be faced with in her new role as superintendent-elect (interim) is the projected reductions in state funding for K-12 education.
During the board study session portion of the meeting, the school board heard the budget update from Chief Financial Officer Ron Hack. Hack presented state revenue forecasts for the next two years and the impacts to K-12 education.
“The recession continues to place a strain on state revenues as well as services provided to communities and education,” Hack said. “Unfortunately, the possible reductions in state revenues could drastically impact the current and future students of our state and district for many years to come. This is the worst economy I have experienced in my 30 years in education.”
Board Study Session: Budget Update 10-13-11 presentation