[Dr. Mary Bone]

I have a few questions about the timeline and possible meet and greets with Dr. Azaiez.

1) When will the community be able to ask Dr. Azaiez questions before a contract is offered? I have done some research and see that Meet and Greets can be offered during the 21-day period. In 2020 Austin ISD held at least three of these types of Q & A’s for their community to get to know their lone finalist before she was given a contract. I would like to offer the same for our community so they can hear the vision and direction Dr. Azaiez has for our district.

2) What is the timeline and date the contract will be offered?

3) Is the board going to offer any type of formal public forum or feedback (other than email) on the selection of Dr. Azaiez prior to contract offering? Community members have asked for reasoning behind the 5-2 vote and I have responded to them individually by email but many have voiced that they want more two way communication on this subject and have asked how the board as a whole can facilitate this. This includes questions on the timeline of the Superintendent search which I have answered but some community members would like verified by an official board statement.

[Danielle Weston]

I think it’s a great idea for the community to have the opportunity to engage Dr Azaiez and ask him questions during this 21 day waiting period. If logistics present a challenge, we’ve learned over the last year that Zoom makes things easy and convenient.

In addition, I reviewed Texas Government Code Sec. 552.126. It states:
“Exception: Confidentiality of Name of Applicant for Superintendent of Public School District
The name of an applicant for the position of superintendent of a public school district is excepted from the requirements of Section 552.021 (Availability of Public Information), except that the board of trustees must give public notice of the name or names of the finalists being considered for the position at least 21 days before the date of the meeting at which a final action or vote is to be taken on the employment of the person.”

It’s important to note that there is no requirement for a contract to be negotiated or signed immediately after the expiration of the 21 day waiting period. My preference is to allow the community to engage Dr Azaiez and that we take the time to craft a mutually beneficial contract that all trustees have the time and opportunity to weigh in on.

[Dr. Mary Bone]

I would like to bring the Trustees attention to our March 1st 2021 called board meeting when Ray & Associates was telling us their plan for our hiring process at the 43:43 mark of the meeting Mike Collins says that they strongly advocate for bringing the finalist back and having forums with both internal and external groups. They also mention that these community groups would get impression forms and be able to give feedback on the candidates. Mr. Collins says that this allows the community to get to know the candidates a little bit. I would like to understand more on why this was not done since it was presented that it would be done. The community paid for this Superintendent search and these forums were advised by the search firm that was selected, what changed?

[Tiffanie N Harrison]

Trustee Bone,

We updated and approved the final timeline on March 11th. Molly from Ray & Associates provided us the approved final timeline by way of Patty via email on March 12th. This final timeline never included finalist forums. If this is something that we wanted, we all had time and the ability to advocate at that point. We have followed our agreed upon timeline with fidelity.

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