Go ahead. Barb. >> Yeah. >> Okay. >> And then there's a section for the tours and a section for interviews. Okay. It's a good thing they're watching live because I'm going to thank them in my script. One more time. start. Okay. All right. Welcome back everyone. First of all, I want to thank thank each of our finalists for the time, preparation, and thoughtfulness you brought to the to the interviews. We appreciate your interest in serving as the next superintendent of Visetta public schools and the opportunity we have had to learn more about your leadership and your vision for our district. I also want to thank the many members of our community, staff, and students who have participated in and supported this process. Selecting a superintendent is one of our one of the most important responsibilities of a school board. The board will now carefully reflect on the interviews and the feedback we receive as we move forward in making this important decision for our district. Thank you all for your continued interest and engagement in Wisetta public schools. Um, the next item on the agenda is selection of the loan finalist and setting up the negotiation process. Barb, do you have any guidelines for us? >> I do have some things to cover before the board begins its deliberations in earnest. Thank you, Chair Sony. So, you have had a very, very busy three, three or four months, and it's been an honor to be a part of that. Uh what we're going to do first is just give you some more background information on some of the activities that occurred yesterday in our day in the district and then I have a few other uh data points to share with you before we move into deliberations and uh visiting specifically about the three finalists that you interviewed earlier today. Uh so as you know there was a lot of activity yesterday uh day in the district. All three finalists had a a tour and interviewed with a community group. Uh, executive director Loots coordinated the vast majority of that and so I'm going to ask for his thoughts to give an overview to you on some of the input you've already received from the interview groups and from the tour leads. So Dave, I'm going to turn it over to you for a minute. >> Thank you, Barb. Uh, board members. So the MSBA summary provided to you compiles the school community member feedback from what we are calling a day in the district. yesterday where across 4 hours each finalist candidate participated in tours of four of our schools and also participated in a brief district service center tool uh tour followed by um an interview uh with a representative group of school community members. So executive executives which includes uh Dana, Trevor, and myself um drove candidates around and Dana drove and she drove fast so we were on time so that's good. um to each site where they were greeted by two students and principles at Birch View and Northwoods elementary schools, West Middle School, and the high school. So, the student and principalled tours were a great opportunity for finalists to see learning in action and engage with students and staff in each school. The school community interviews at the district service center included 36 representatives for from one or more of the following groups. So, district and program leaders, principles, uh, reps from various employee groups, and parent and community member reps from five of Weisetta's advisory groups, including the Citizens Financial Advisory Council, the Curriculum and Instruction and Technology Advisory Committee, the Community Ed Advisory Council, the Special Education Advisory Council, and the Weisetta Indigenous Advisory Committee. So following activities yesterday, each participant uh each of our school community member participants filled out a short form to provide feedback in the form of strengths and wonderments. And so that's what was submitted to you. A couple of notes about that feedback. The first page was a summary uh that highlights the strengths and wonderments school community members provided across activities uh with a more specific breakdown then in the pages that follow. Strengths were where participants felt uh they saw evidence of alignment with the position profile utilized by the schoolboard in the search process. Wonderments were questions that came up that participants either didn't see addressed in the setting they were in or had further questions about based on what they saw and heard. So community member participants were either in the tour or the interview but not in both. So a wonderment from someone in a tour might have been addressed in an interview or vice versa. Uh feedback was summarized uh utilizing AI from MSBA. So that's the the first page that you have. I won't make comments about the specific feedback with the exception of a fun highlight. So if you look at the student feedback, you'll probably notice a range of comments. Um with with several of our student tour guides being in the primary grades, uh their perception of a wonderment was more along the lines of why do you want to become a superintendent? So that was kind of fun. Um it's a good wonderment. Uh but just a reminder, we had students grades one all the way up to 12. So you'll notice a different difference in the feedback there. Um I want to take a moment to thank every individual who gave up part or all of their day to participate in these activities. Uh thanks to Barb Dorne and also my HR team and other district staff who helped with the setup and coordination of the day. I felt like we represented the district very well. Um which is easy to do when our students and schools are center stage. So thank you. >> Thank you very much for that summary. And uh I would agree everyone put in a lot of time yesterday. I was fortunate enough to facilitate the community interviews with that large group and they were there by 10 in the morning and didn't get to leave until almost 5:00 p.m. One of the things that was real important for the feedback on the tours as well as the feedback on the interviews is that participants were required to engage with all three finalists in order to submit that feedback. So no one for example attended one or two interviews and then left. They needed to attend all three community interviews in order to provide the feedback that you have already seen. So, we hope that information is helpful. The top page for each of the three finalists is the overall summary. So, again, we can refer back to that if needed. But I hope you feel like you heard the voice of the folks that participated in day in the district much like you did in the original school communities public engagement survey. And if you have questions, let us know. But that is one data point for you to consider is the input from those folks on the very specific individuals you interviewed today. I also am going to uh very briefly discuss the EMD form that you have in front of you, the exceeds meets disappoints. There was a rubric created that you use to help you select the answers whether they exceeded expectations, met your expectations, or if you were disappointed in an answer. So, I hope the rubric was helpful. In addition, uh we want you to trust your your core gut because we have seven diverse views on this board and one of the things that we say at MSBA is diversity of thought is a very good thing. So we also wanted you to use your own personal interpretation of those answers on top of the rubric. So when you look at this, I'm not going to go through it in depth. It's not a ranking of your candidates. A ranking of your candidates in order 1, two, and three is public data. This is not that. This simply indicates how you as board members are leaning in terms of how the answers broken out by each question resonated with you. But when you look at it, the key things to look for are the more ease more exceeds is a good sign because that means your expectations were exceeded by that answer. So the more ease a candidate has, that's great. And then conversely, the more D's or disappoints a candidate has does tend to resonate in a different way with you and that the disappoints are not something you necessarily want to see as much. But it is again one tool in a very large toolbox of things that you are considering. So the day in the district feedback, the EMD form, that's all I'm going to say about it. And then uh as we move into the next part of deliberations, uh you'll first each share a strength that you noticed from the uh the candidates so that I can take some notes. They're always hungry for feedback after board deliberations. And then at the same time, you'll start with the first candidate. Uh Dr. Rob Virgin was the first candidate this morning. Talk about strengths. I'll just jot some things down that you each say. And I think then we will stay on that finalist and ask the two board members that provided uh reference checks. this week since Monday night to provide their um report on the reference checking that they did on Dr. Virgin and then we'll move on to the second candidate and the third. After that, we'll begin your deliberations and when we get to that point, I'm going to offer you a few more tips because you do have three outstanding people to consider. So, for now, as far as report outs, um I guess I'll turn it back over to Chair Sony and we can collect some feedback from board members on your first uh interview this morning. >> Okay. Thank you so much Barb. Um I hope I got this right. So we will talk about the strengths of Dr. Brics first, >> right? Dr. Renie Briggs. Oh, Dr. Rob Virgin. Yes, the first one. Um and I I want to just go randomly for now. Let's see if we volunteer. If not, I'll volunteer you. >> Okay, >> I'll volunteer. >> She'll have you go first. Thank you. strengths of Dr. Rob Virgin. Um he he was had a very intentional high level understanding of the systems and uh process for leadership. >> I saw Dr. version uh as a forward-looking and collaborative leader who leads by influence and trusts and empowers his leadership team to do the same. >> Oh, sorry. Um I feel that he answered questions very thoroughly and aligned with our strategic roadmap here in Wisetta. >> Good go. I think he um very well demonstrated his why for wanting the role. >> Um I think he was incredibly comfortable and natural in our space. Um and he was clear in his responses for us. Um and I found it he said something in particular. He said, "Your desk is a dangerous place to lead from." And I deeply appreciated that he would be forward-f facing in our schools. He starts his days there and and I uh I think that's a great way to lead. I feel like he's big in innovation uh looking into um opportunity to stay uh to change as uh life is changing uh with require I mean with what is life requiring from us and I really appreciated uh his um anti-hendance of excellence and his curiosity about that. Um we need to know how we are coming to uh we shouldn't be in lucky stage. Uh we need to know how does it work so that we can implement it in other school buildings. And um I really actually as liked how someone said um he's showing that his whole life was about um education and he he was looking forward to have to um attain that kind of position. >> Thank you. Um so as far as my observation of his strengths um one of the things I think it he he will build on if he's selected as the superintendent he will build on our CTE program because he already has experience in the career pathways and capstone learning systems created to strengthen highquality instruction. So that is one of his strengths. Um and he also facilitated a comprehensive safety task force that included educators, administrators, parents, students and community partners. So this might not be from from the interview today but we have already had one with him uh last week. I've also left uh checked out his website, his profile etc. So so this is a combination of all of them. Okay. So let's move on to the next candidate that came today, Dr. Renie Briggs. Right. >> I think we're going to do the reference check refuge. >> Oh, reference checks on that candidate. Correct. Thank you. Thank you. Okay. >> Pointing that out. >> Um I can start us off there. I'll just um tell my board colleagues a little bit about um the process that Alicia and I um took part in for the reference checks. Um for the most part, we tried to reach out to people that were not recommended by the candidates. We tried to do what's called a blind reference check. Um there were a few that were recommended because they were provided to us after the names went public and we tried to reach out to them as well. Um we tried to balance our reference checks between school board members, employees that have worked directly with the candidates, citizens who live in the candidates, current or former districts, and teachers union presidents. We tried to contact the same number of references for all candidates, but not everyone we reached out to responded to us. Um and so then Alicia and I would like to go and she will tell you what she heard and about um Rob Virgin and then I will Okay. References describe Rob as an innovative and forward-thinking leader who empowers students and develops strong teams while driving meaningful district change. He's proactive, visionary, and comfortable moving initiatives forward, even without a perfect plan, trusting that progress and adjustments will occur along the way. References noted his leadership is calm, steady, and decisive with a willingness to try new ideas while still respecting tradition, and thoughtfully challenging the status quo. He's described as highly relational, personable, and charismatic with strong communication and public speak public speaking skills. staff enjoy working for him and feel supported, noting that he gives employees autonomy while checking in regularly and mentoring newer staff. References highlighted his visibility, strong organization, and deep awareness of district operations. Overall, they emphasized his authenticity, work ethic, and ability to inspire others. Um the people I spoke with um I heard very similar things to Alicia. I will just go over some of the highlights. Um the references I spoke with had a lot of good things to say. Uh they described Dr. Virgin as extremely hardworking, a skilled leader, and a fast learner. He uh they said he has a good grasp of the system and how to get things done. Um they pointed out he has achieved measurable successes. Um they mentioned he is well researched. He bases his decisions on research and he is good at communicating the why behind changes and getting buyin. They said he was uh collaborative and humble and values input from others with expertise and when he makes a decision he leads with vision and clarity. Uh I think maybe the most um notable thing someone said about him which I thought was worth sharing is that they called him inspiring. Next we will hear references from about Dr. Renie bricks. Should we go in the reverse order from last time or just randomly? Random. Okay. Who wants to go first? >> I go first. Let's go first. Okay. Um so the strength I noticed was um the strong transition plan uh with very clear actions deliverables uh he saw himself in the role of YZA superintendent and thought through what would what it would take to take transition from Dr. Anderson. So I thought that was uh really impressive that >> um I found his understanding of special education and needs commendable. >> Then yeah >> I um I appreciate how he continued to refer back to the road map. >> I'm sorry. >> I'm sorry. I can say it again. I appreciated how he um continuously referred back to the road map. >> I would say right away even from first uh interview you cannot deny he's charismatic. I mean he enters the room it uh and he fills the room uh with his personality. um comes as approachable approachable. >> Okay. >> Yeah, I'd like to follow I mean I felt that myself. Um very engaging speaker today. Um high level understanding of our district and the expectations that we have and that was reiterated in some of the other documents we've been able to see today. Um I've I appreciated that the the care that he has for students really came through. >> Um I found a couple of strengths um among many. So as COO he was responsible for leadership and oversight of construction, custodial facilities, preventive maintenance, transportation, food and nutrition, district and school security and warehouse services. So a lot of them um and then he also strongly believes that transparency builds trust and he has proven it uh with with in his profile as well with an example of how he reallocated resources for equity. So that's it. Go with the >> Yeah. So references. Yeah. Okay. References report that Rainey has a strong focus on equity and education and demonstrates a deep commitment to supporting students. References describe him as engaging, driven, and highly personable with strong public speaking skills. He's vo viewed as an upbeat and impressive presenter who communicates thoughtful ideas effectively and connects well with audiences. Um again the references I spoke with um shared similar things with me. Um they said he's an engaging and upbeat leader. Um that he has a strong focus on equity and a deep commitment to student success. That was a commonly recurring thing. Again is just his his care for the students. Um other things they said was that he's a team player that takes on responsibilities outside his role. They said he's someone who other leaders come to for input. They said, uh, he's engaged with the community. He regularly attends events and has a good rapport with people. And, uh, one of the, um, highlights of what I was told was somebody said he's been a breath of fresh air here in De Moine. Okay. So, the last candidate we interviewed today was Superintendent McIntyre. Who wants to go first? >> Not you again, P. Okay. for us is not me again. >> Um I one thing I appreciated about um Corey McIntyre was um him communicating his relationships with lawmakers, other educators and how they could benefit our community. his uh seven years experience um as a superintendent stood out to me. Um when we look at some of our critical goals this year, again, referendum as an example. So the pre and the postreferendum experience that he articulated um was really instrumental in my opinion. Um it was clear to me that has he has a really deep understanding of the systems that support education, public schools. Um and he had a really um clear and calm demeanor about how to communicate that easily so that it's easily digestible. Um, I feel like overall that his background and his experience as a superintendent um really showed in both his presentation and in the thoroughess he was able to answer a lot of the questions we gave him today. >> Uh, I appreciated his um presentation skills and his ability to be to communicate directly and clearly. Um, and he's his experience is vast and it it shows Um especially from first comed uh when we had first round meeting it was very visible that he speaks from his heart. I mean even his hand gesture goes to his heart. I also like that even though we asked challenging questions he said I love it. I uh saw that he takes challenges actually not as challenges but like an opportunity an opportunity to what what can we do about that? it's u shows leadership and um also he has an experience obviously as a superintendent at um two districts and one of them is a very large one and obviously challenging one at the same time his phrase was being able to lead through noises and to show by the work and results just um to be able to continue working with a board and with a leadership even though there might be some noises. I think I'm going to repeat uh some of the things that my colleagues have said. Um mostly a great communicator that speaks with clarity expects clarity as well from board members and it's reciprocal for him. Um he obviously had experience uh leading two large districts, neighboring districts and also impressed with his experience in student services and special ed. Okay. Um I will go through what I heard. Um, references describe Corey as a leader who generally trusts staff to do their jobs and takes a hands-off hands-off approach. Overall, references personal experiences with him have been positive and they described him as a kind and effective spokesperson who works to build consensus. They also noted he has made efforts to connect with staff from a variety of backgrounds and perspectives. The references I spoke with said um Corey McIntyre um is calm, consistent, and a stable leader. One person said he would thrive in a district like Weisetta. They said he has a strong background in or they appreciated his strong background in special education and MTSS. And um they said he's an amazing advocate for students. Uh they said that one benefit of Corey McIntyre would be his large friend network um of other leaders in Minnesota that he can learn from and bounce ideas off of. Um other references said he was sincere, competent and dependable. >> Thank you all. And you know this this proves how how diverse we are in our thoughts in in in the process itself or the opinions and I think it's a great strength of this board our diversity in thoughts and opinions. I think this really brings um uh brings us at the forefront of our board should be but uh thank you all. Uh next step in the process is there will be no drum rolls but individually share who you are leaning toward selecting as the next superintendent do not rank. Okay. So just I think we need only one one candidate that you who you are leaning toward and uh see and we'll see if a consensus begins to build up and among a majority of the board and we'll continue discussions if necessary after that. So I think I'm going to start from here, go this way, come that way, and then I will I will say last. >> Um this is a a very hard decision. Um right now I am leaning towards Dr. uh Rob Virgin. >> I agree. Um this is a a difficult decision. Um you know, hearing uh interviews um was very enlightening today. Um, and I appreciate the materials put to us. Um, at this time I'm leaning toward um, Dr. Virgin. I'm leaning toward Dr. Virgin. I love that you guys are so definitive at this point. Um, honestly, I think if I can just give a little bit of background, um, as someone who was not part of the first round, I came into today just knowing what I've been reading and was lucky enough to do some of the um, speaking to some of the references and I think today made it even um, a harder decision in many ways. So, can I say both that I'm leaning towards or I need to choose one? I can. Okay. I feel like we are looking at two very strong candidates in my personal opinion of Rob Virgin and Corey McIntyre and they both bring different strengths and different wonderments to the table and I think we have to decide as a board what direction we are really looking to move forward. >> Thank you Alicia for going for going before me. Um I was also um sort of debating between two candidates. Um and I looked at few things. Um again when I look at what our Wiser is looking or Wiser school district is looking for uh we are really looking at stable trusted collaborative leadership. We want to sustain and elevate academic excellence for each and every student. um most importantly our strategic planning and then justification of our effective usage of our resources. So those were some of the things I kept in mind. Um at the same time the budget and financing, collaborative leadership, curriculum development, effective communicator again those are some of the qualities that that we are looking forward. Um I am kind of deciding between uh Rob and Corey. Um at this point in time I am leaning towards Corey McIntyre uh for his superintendent experience and I understand prior experience uh is not the only criteria. Sometimes, you know, you have to look at the future capabilities and I think um Rob is really great. I think he can do it. But when I look at where we are as a district and the initiatives or tasks that we have to accomplish this year, I feel we need somebody who is aware and in the system. So there is not a lot to learn in year one. So if somebody who is well positioned in the current system has right connects who understand how it works to me it's a lot easier to build on that foundation and then take it from there. Again that's that's where I'm right now. Uh but again I really had difficult time selecting between Rob and Corey but again at this point in time I'm leaning towards Corey. This is hard. Um like uh Paris said both I at this point I I would consider talking about two uh representatives. They have their own strength and uh one obviously can bring in uh some innovations. Another one has a stable hand because he already had been at that position um and also has connections and given the fact that uh we will we're facing referendum and then u complexity what going to be associated with that I'm not I mean you uh outline very well what are the pros and concerns um and I what what are the strong sides of uh both candidates? Um in this case, I'm talking about Corey and um Urgent. I feel like um at this point I am leaning uh based on our needs uh and based on uh what are we facing uh this year. I'm leaning towards Corey. This is a really really hard decision. Um I said before um that when we were approving the the three candidates for today, we started with an incredibly strong pool and now you all see how strong of a pool we had. Um I um for me the decision is between um Dr. Virgin and Superintendent McIntyre. Um, they both bring incredible strengths and they have different styles and that's I think that's where we should have some discussion around it. Um, because I'm thinking about, you know, as a board we're thinking about the long-term vision and the long term of the district. We're not thinking about just we have to think about tomorrow and next year, but we also have to think about five and 10 years down the road and and what that looks like. Um so right now I am leaning towards um Dr. Virgin. >> Thank you everyone. It's tough, very tough. Um I will speak about Dr. Virgin and Superintendent McIntyre. In my entire life, I have never had to make a decision like this. So, you can imagine how how tough it it it it is. Um I think both both bring a lot of strength and like either Paris or Valentina I don't remember who said said that but we have to look at the long maybe Heidi said that long term right >> okay so I totally agree with that I think we have to look at the long-term um prospect the future of our district um and uh I think both candidates said that it's not just about how good we are but we how good we can become 5 years, 10 years, 20 years from now. So um so I did not flip a coin. I I can promise you that. But I I did put slight a slightly higher weight on Dr. Virgin. So I'm leaning toward Dr. Rob Virgin for for the next superintendent. Okay. So, looks like four of us have clearly indicated Dr. Rob Buren as their choice. Two as Superintendent McIntyre and one is undecided between the two. Alicia, would you like to make a make a choice right now? I mean, I think this is the trickiest part of this school board situation is I would love to be able to have I mean, can we have a bit of a conversation because I know, you know, we're looking at all of the feedback we've gotten from our community and I can go through and check so much of these for both of these candidates that we've all sort of landed on here. And I really think it comes back to what our main priority not only for, you know, ourselves here, but clearly for our community, what direction we feel like our community is, you know, wanting to go and feeling like they need right now from us. Um, so I guess if I need to I Yeah, I'm having I'd like to have a little more discussion. Can we discuss? So the issue I'm having and I I'm grateful for a discussion. I think this is important. So we should definitely discuss this. Um, Corey McIntyre and Rob Virgin both kind of meet a lot of the, you know, leadership profile aspects we're looking for and um, you know, they they meet a lot of the things we're looking for and kind of the they're very different though um, and what they will bring and their leadership styles and I think that's why we're having a hard time and and I don't know that the leadership prior pri or profile or the survey was going to help us a whole lot when I look at the feedback from the day in the district it identifies everything that we're talking about you know and so there's there's really there's not a clear choice looking at the looking at our community's input I think there's again arguments to be made for both so I that I know that's not helpful but >> well That's that's fine as me. >> I think that's why, you know, I I don't know. I think we just have to decide we have to decide between two very good things and that is hard. >> All I can say Alicia is this is definitely not a science. You know, if it was a science, we could have put put some numbers in in the spreadsheet, you know, cranked them out or asked Chad GPT or something, right? But this is a lot about gut feeling, instinct, uh the overall process. Um and hopefully you you read the profiles, the references that were also in their in their profiles and you know, not just the interview itself, but also talking to the community and getting feedback from the community. I think those are important things that we may not even bring up here. But those are in the back of our minds. So >> yeah, and I I mentioned this and again um I completely agree. I mean this year is critical but we have to also look at it from the long-term standpoint. But that being said, I also believe in how many new things a person is going to pick up and in what period of time, right? And again, that's where I totally appreciate, like I said, um Rob is really forward-looking leader. Uh he's got really good out ofthe-box ideas and he's willing to take risk to do something different within the guidelines. So I think that's really a good quality but at the same time we are coming out of the era where we have Dr. Anderson who's been here for 18 years. It is going to be hard for us to or anyone to put in his his shoe if you will. So that's where I was looking at that stable sort of leadership team or who's that stable leader who understands the system who has the right connections today. Now again Corey also mentioned it's not about just keeping the status quo it has we have to elevate right we have a good background we are in good financial situation but how do we capitalize on that and how do we how do we go beyond that so I definitely see that aspect from Corey as well um I didn't feel he was saying this is it um but again two different leadership styles I just looked at what do we have in front of us for next 1 to 3 years and how do I remediate some of the variables or how can I keep only minimal variables if you will um again each candidate will be new to YZA they have to earn that trust um that's all there but again as they as they look at how am I going to build the trust how how am I going to keep the system running how am I going to elevate um the educational outcomes. How am I going to look at the referendum outcome? There are just too many things to look at. And that's where I I kind of narrowed it down to if somebody's already someone has been there, done that, it's much easier for them to pick up things that are new and then elevate. So that's where my sort of thought process was. And again, I wholeheartedly agree. Um the the other other aspect I again I also looked at some of our community surveys and I think students vote came pretty close I think 50/50 but everybody else um they rated the prior superintendent experience as higher. So again, I'm not suggesting that is the only criteria, but again, that's why I I sort of I'm leaning towards coding. >> I am, you know, appreciate the perspectives that my colleagues have shared. I think they're very foundational to the conversation um we are having. I'd like to, you know, sort of respectfully push back on the idea that okay, it needs to be someone who's been, you know, tried and tested in the past. I think when we find that someone's making a a vertical move, there's that there's that need they have to to prove themsel versus a lateral move where it's I'm accustomed to this and perhaps the expectation situation the way they would prove themselves would be different. Um, and what I saw from Dr. Virgin was that that hunger for the role. I could tell that he really wanted it. And actually to to to make an analogy, it made me recall some coaching my dad had given me in basketball where he said in a in a in a jump ball, whoever gets the ball is the one who wants it more. And that's what I see with um with Dr. Virgin. He wants the role more and he's going to serve our community well. I'm going to ask a question because that's what we do as board members, right? We got to ask the right questions. And as I was listening to your comments, I'm wondering is it the nervousness or the fear of the change that's underlying your comments or is it something else? >> It's not so much the fear of change because no matter what there is a change that's happening. It's how do you handle that change? And again, have you been in that situation before where you know the space, you know the options, you know people and how do you react, right? And I wholeheartedly again agree with Dan. That is not the only criteria. But when I started looking at different priorities, that's where I felt like, hey, I would pick someone who's been in that role, who has experience so it's easier for them to manage things that they have already done or accomplished in the past and then focus on new things. Again, community trust that is going to be big deal for anyone who comes in because they are all new to this community. But while they do that there are other things that cannot take back seat because how they do well in those areas that's going to help building the trust right so that's where I think it'll be too many priorities and risk for someone new versus someone who's already been there done that so again I'm I'm and like I said it's just the prior experience is what I'm putting forward or giving more weightage If it wouldn't have been referendum situation, if we're not building two new schools in next 3 years, um I probably would have had different answer in all fairness. But just looking at where the red act is going, we're looking at metrics driven results obviously the referendum and assuming referendum goes through the next steps will be significant in terms of funding. Now I'll give an example right um we talked about it in finance meeting in our ATFM meeting Corey was able to quickly relate to some of the synergies that if the referendum passes how we can synergize that funding with existing LTFM that's exactly what we've been talking about in our meetings right so my point is he already knows that he has already seen it so when something like half a billion dollar worth of referendum passes and when we actually try to put that in motion, we know what else to look for and he's already seen that. So again, um I should have said that, but again, I don't know if you guys caught that LTFM comment. That was right on the spot because we've talked about it in both in our facility committee as well as finance committee. And those are the type of things will help if you if you've been there done that that's easy to relate and easy to quickly implement. >> Thank you. >> I'll tell you too, Alicia. I think from my perspective, so as we were looking at all the candidates that we interviewed, um it was clear to me at the end of that day we were going to bring forth three very different people. And I think it's really good that we have three very different people because as a board um we can think about the strategy that we're looking to, right? So it's not just about the individual, but the strategy of the future of our district and what what what priorities we have there and what values we hold there. Um so that's that's something that's been on my mind for since we interviewed is is what's the strategy going to be? Um, and I totally I did pick up on that synergy and I I was thinking also about the team that we currently have and how whoever is in that superintendent seat is going to get solid advice from really practiced tried and trueue experts in the SLT and in the in this office of the superintendent. So yes, he recognized it and I think the the current team would would catch that as well. >> Go ahead. >> I will just add that um we are yes, we have a lot going on this year with the referendum and the construction potential construction projects. That's not always going to be the case. And again, looking longterm, I'm I'm Wisett is amazing and it could be even better. Like we could be so I mean we I I'm looking for a visionary and I feel like Rob Virgin really brings that and thinking long term like how good could Weisata be under his leadership. um speaking with references it was it was clear that um people felt that he had like an innate leadership skill and that he you know he could learn things quickly. So I having people to advise him and I mean he's not the only one. He has he's a large network of people in Minnesota as well as um Corey. So there will be people to give him advice and a lot of a lot of people here helping him to succeed. Um in coupling that with his innate abilities, I just think we could do something really great here. >> I I also want to add one more thing. I totally agree with what uh director Janestra said earlier about wanting the p the the hunger for that position. I saw a lot of that in him. In addition to that, I think I think we we will see I I sometimes feel that that fresh blood, somebody that is not going to do the same thing as has happened before, you know, continuing in the same vein is always a good thing for a district and I believe that he will be good for future the future boards and I think he will be an asset. We we will be gone well before he probably he retires. I don't know. But um but I think he will bring a a a good very strong position for future boards. That's what I believe in. >> Okay. Well, I was just going to chime in as I'm listening. So, yes, I mean everything you guys are saying, it's very helpful. I think it really what I'm clearly feeling is that you know if I'm being honest um yes there's a sense of maybe reassurance of having someone who has you know been in the position um has been there done that to some degree but there's also something to be said for somebody who is you know and again I was able to do a lot of these reference checks I mean the amount I mean one thing that stood out that I guess we didn't put either of us, but I think we both heard is that Rob knows every single person's name and learns them immediately. Um, he attends so many events that, you know, almost to a fault that he is at everything all the time. That's really important and I think that's another huge thing that our community respects about Chase and is going to be a shift and it's important, you know, for me. So, that definitely came to the front. Um, but yes, I also feel like I highlighted so many great ideas that Corey was able to share today and that just comes with experience and so that is really reassuring to go, "Oh, wow." Like take notes on that. I literally have, you know, highlights and little um boxes of like that's stuff that I think we should talk about doing. Um, but that being said, I think that's things that Rob could easily fall into, especially if we are there to guide him and if we trust our administrators to also guide. Um, so yes, I I feel like if I had to say right now, I'm my gut feeling is I would be leaning towards Rob Virgin. >> Oh, I'm sorry. Thank you. Is everybody okay if we if I make a recommendation and then move? No, >> I don't think so. >> Okay. Well, then you want to discuss more deliberate. That's why I asked. >> Yeah. >> You want more discussion? I mean, that's all you can do. >> I have to admit during the first round, I believe I gave to both of them exact the same um exceed marks. It was so hard to choose. Um today Cory McIntyre stood out for me because um we are looking for leader. We are not looking for a person uh who would be dependent on administration. Yes. Uh leader cannot solve alone. um would be relying but at the same time leader is leading not um I'm not very feeling comfortable with a phrase trust the experts because I heard plenty uh evidence and examples in several years uh when we were trusting experts it did not come true but Corey what I liked about it when we talk about education. He brought also the experience what they've done already with Redact and what kind of changes were done uh such way that they already saw results and um that they hearing the results. Um and also I liked so many hearing that uh he's comfortable uh um working with board to the degree uh to get a feedback and communication every week. That's a change too. That's um that's why today today was for me decision making day as I said because first round I felt I was torn. Um but today uh Corey McIntyre stood out for me. I agree with you Valentina that um a leader should not just trust their and and that person should be leading. Um I think both people that we're talking about right now bring their own strengths and both of them would require different levels of support and different types of support um in different ways. Um but they do and You know, Superintendent McIntyre also spoke about the office of the superintendent and how they work collaboratively on things. And that's that's where I was coming from. It wasn't a just trust. There was a trust and verify piece, right? That they're working together and it's going to be based on or a professional relationship that's developed over time and um and they would work together. So, that's that was my intention in that comment. It wasn't just a reliance on the SLT or the executive team. It's really working in collaboration in tandem together. >> I will also add that I thought that Superintendent McIntyre was standout today. He was fantastic. Dr. McIntyre was was Superintendent McIntyre was absolutely phenomenal and standout. He was really great today. Yeah. >> I was just going to say anyone is changing their stand. >> Anybody else? >> And I think it's a good good challenge to have. I think it is really good conversation because we are looking at two strong candidates and again it's maybe the fraction of here and there we're talking about. So this is definitely a good challenge to have. So I think no matter who we pick um will be great for YZ that definitely there is no doubt in my mind. >> Yeah. So that's one of the first phrases I heard when I came to America. It's a good problem to have. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Well, yeah, this is a much easier decision when you have one standout candidate. And I appreciate that all of you recognize the quality of your finalists and are struggling with the decision because that shows you did have an attractive position and some very qualified people. I just wanted to point you to the colored sheet if that's going to be helpful for anybody. That is the leadership profile at the top. Sometimes it does help folks to reread that point by point and just in your head think of which perhaps of these two are stronger for any of those uh seven bullet points in the leadership profile. And of course revisiting the public engagement summary report which I know you all did prior to the interviews and that is summarized on the right side with the specialized skills that the public is seeking and areas of expertise at the bottom of the sheet. So sometimes this helps um but not always because you do have two very different people with different skill sets and backgrounds and experience. But this dialogue is very important. And I also do want to commend you and appreciate that you are advocating for versus advocating against because it is really truly a challenge when you have people such as this in your pool. So with that, continue discussing, deliberating. At some point someone could make a motion. It's not required. We could keep at this for hours if you'd like to. We'll stay as long as needed, but we'll have to take a break now and again. Uh so it's really truly up to the board. This is your only employee that you hire and oversee and uh I'm here to help if I can, but honestly, this is in the hands of the board. So, thank you. Would uh would people like to take a break, think for five minutes, maybe more or h >> um I'm happy to motion for a >> you want to make a five minute recess. >> Okay. So So I'll read the recommendation and then you can make that you know move that. Okay. So that way we are we are okay with what's >> the recommendation for? Huh? >> What's the recommendation? >> Who should be our next superintendent? I thought we were going to continue discussing. >> Tan is ready to make a motion. >> Are you Do you want a break? >> Yeah. >> Recess. >> Oh, recess. All right. Sorry. >> Okay. You don't have to make a motion. I I just >> I didn't talk loud later. I'm sorry. >> Okay. All right. So, let's take a five minute break. >> Sounds good. >> Yeah. >> Thank you. Okay, thank you. Welcome back. Um, let's continue the discussion if anybody wants to say something. Okay. So, I I am never somebody who tells anybody how to think, but I I offer my thought process and I offer um grounding information and and how I'm thinking about things. Um in this district's history, we've had really great leadership over the course of time. Some have stayed longer than others, and both ways work. Um the last leader that we had came into a district that was at 9,000 some students and today we are at over 13,000. That person was not the person he is today. He grew into that over the course of time. And um I am certain that when he walked into that office, he had a lot of learning to do and a lot of growth to do because it's just it's just where you are on the trajectory of your career. And so um that's that's also part of what I'm thinking about is is is you know as I think about Dr. virgin. I think about I think that he is going to be wise enough to surround himself with good support and good mentorship um and strong leaders. Not necessarily his cabinet or the senior leadership, but I think he will find that growth and development support outside of the district as well. Um, and I just I see a lot of opportunity there. >> I would like to add to that and say I I think even within himself he has a lot of wisdom. I don't I don't know. Yes, he's moved up quickly and he doesn't have the experience, but I don't know that that's necessary um for a person to be able to make good decisions and be a good leader. I was just going to share um again when we were asked to do our reports on references, you know, we were trying to just kind of do high level. I will say um and again it was difficult because it I the alignment of what type of references and how they exactly knew and the length of relationship was a little different. One thing I will say though, I was lucky enough to speak to some direct staff of Robs and um both of them said it not in any way as a detriment if anything to say a positive that while he did a great job while he was in the principal role that they felt like he'd really found his place when he moved into that superintendent role or assistant superintendent role that like it really matched his abilities in a different way and they've seen so much growth over the time. So that's just another thing to think about as I know that just seems to be something that we may have some wonderment about is just readiness and ability to grow and evolve. >> Can can I add one more thing? >> I think Dr. Virgin's background, educational background in curriculum is really interesting, like really deeply interesting. And the fact that he has connections to other universities, Harvard, University of Minnesota, those are those are very powerful, like those are powerhouses in education. Um, and I think that could be of great use to a very high functioning, high expectation district. Thank you. So, I'm just going to say something. I'm not putting words in my colleagues my m mouth, but the sense I'm getting is um that we are taking a risk with Dr. virgin. Whereas with uh Superintendent McIntyre, the risk is very little and I I on my part I I do not believe we are taking a risk with the with the Dr. Virgin Alicia. Can I ask you a question and you can say if you can't say I'm not sure. You said you spoke with direct reports of Dr. Virgins. Did you speak with direct reports of Superintendent McIntyre? Is that okay for me to share? >> Just no names or titles, so it's not identifiable. >> Yeah. Um, no, we were I would say Sheila would probably concur. It was a little more difficult for us to get reference contacts. Thank you. with the size of Anoka Henipin. Um, yeah, it was diff difficult to find people that work directly under him and have a lot of interaction. There's a lot of layers between the superintendent and the people we spoke with. I guess just to continue to piggyback on that, um, one thing that I did learn through that process though was it sounds like, um, a position of deputy superintendent has been added in Anoka Henipin since Corey has been there. Um, which has sort of added another layer of accessibility maybe in some ways. And again, it's a much bigger district. So, I think it makes a ton of sense. But I think that was the other piece that I was running into is >> Barb, maybe this is a question for you. Um, structurally, what does that look like? So, there's superintendent, deputy, and then are there assistant soups also, or is it that like an assistant soup? >> That is not my area of expertise. I work almost exclusively with school boards. I have been told that an assistant soup and associate soup are very similar. It's just a choice of words that a district may use. Uh deputy superintendent, if I could ask the cabinet, is there a difference there that you could share? >> In an NOA Henipin, there is the superintendent. They've added the deputy superintendent who oversees a couple assistant soups, maybe even four assistant soups, who then go down to um like teaching and learning and so forth. They're just a lot bigger than us. Uh, I'm ready to make a motion. >> I'm going to read the recommendation and then you can move if you would like. So, the recommendation is to extend the offer of an employment contract for the position of Visetta Public Schools Superintendent to Dr. Rob Virgin contingent upon a mutually agreeable employment contract being negotiated. >> I so move. >> I second. >> Moved and seconded. Is there a discussion? >> Just want to make uh one quick comment and again um really get great conversation and what I like about this board is again it's very diverse. Everybody has different background. Everybody's giving their inputs and that makes us special. Um so I wanted to call it out that hey even though we don't have unanimous vote the decision will be all of ours. So I think wholeheartedly this board stands behind the decision that we make here and we will be all supportive and we'll move forward. So again I think we came very close. I know there is kind of split vote uh but feels good. Um and again like I said wholeheartedly we will all stand behind what board is deciding today. >> Yeah. >> I really want to compliment everyone who's been a part of um this process from my board colleagues to um administration to um Barb Dorne um with MSBA. It's been such a a learning opportunity with so many wonderments and just everything I've been able to take in and um understand better. It just really goes a long way. So, thank you to everyone who's made this process possible. I think we have um brought to the community an outstanding finalist. And while it was a difficult decision, I believe it is the correct decision. So, thank you to everyone who's been a part of this and um I look forward to our our future in our community. If I could just offer, I know that we that approving the superintendent does not require a unanimous vote. I know that very well. And um if we are able to gift that to our incoming superintendent, I think that's a really great leg up to both the superintendent and our community. >> Thank you. Thank you uh Paris for your comments. I appreciate it. If uh um Superintendent McIntyre does not become our next superintendent, I just want to let him know that this has been a very very tough decision, very close call. Okay. So for me, this like I said earlier, I can't think of any tougher decision and unfortunately we cannot have two superintendents. So, so I think I think we'll we'll just go ahead and uh vote on this again. So, there are no more comments. I'm going to read the recommendation again. The recommendation is to extend the offer of an employment contract for the position of Weisetta Public School Superintendent to Dr. Rob Virgin contingent upon a mutually agreeable employment contract being negotiated. Uh it's a roll call vote. There was a motion by Sheila and a second by Heidi. >> Thank you, colleagues. Colleagues, Sheila Prior, >> yes. >> Heidi Kater, >> yes. >> Valentina Ays. >> No. >> Tangestra. Dan Janestro votes yes. Alicia Little, >> yes. >> Paris Bendy, >> no. >> Milan Sahonyi, >> yes. The motion passes and so I'm now going to make the announcement of the loan finalist. Tonight, the board selected Dr. Rob Burgjin as the next superintendent of Wisetta Public Schools. This was a thoughtful and thorough process as you might have seen earlier and we were fortunate to have an exceptionally strong group of candidates. We are confident that Dr. Virgin's leadership, experience, and commitment to students will serve our district well. The board looks to uh forward to partnering with Dr. Virgin as we continue our work to support every student and strengthen Wisetta Public Schools. After we adjourn, a committee consisting consisting of Heidi, Valentina, and me with executive director of HR Dave Luds as our consultant will set plans for district negotiations with the new superintendent. This concludes the Wisetta Public Schools special board meeting. Yes, Barb, I'm sorry. If you could please call a fivem minute recess so that the chair and I could go out in the hall and make a quick phone call and then I also don't leave because I do have some wrap-up items for you upon conclusion of the search. So don't quite adjourn yet. >> Okay. >> Thank you both. Yes. >> All right. I motion for recess. I'll come tell you when you should go. >> Sounds like a plan. >> Amy is a lot less conspicuous. Okay, welcome back everyone. >> Congratulations. I'm going to uh ask Chair Sony to give you a brief update on the conversation we had uh with your selected finalist in the hallway and then I'll be back to wrap up some loose ends with the board before you adjourn. >> Okay. Thank you, Barb. Yes, it was very very brief. I Barb helped me get connected with Dr. Virgin. I gave him the news and he was very happy. He has thanked everybody on the board for the support and he looks forward to working with with us and the district as soon as it's possible and I did speak to him about the negotiations, contract negotiations. He will be traveling next week so we will most likely be able to meet with him the following week. Dave, you guys want to know? So that's all and then then I gave the phone back to Barb. All right. Thank you. So, I just wanted to do a couple of things in closing. Uh, first and foremost, want to let you know that I will reach out to Dr. Briggs and Superintendent McIntyre. I'm going to express your appreciation for their interest in this position and, uh, visit with them about the board's decision and how competitive this pool truly was. Uh, there's been a press release already shared with Amy Parnell. She's uh, weisettaizing it to make it uh, uh, speak like Weisetta instead of like me. Um, so I really appreciate the communications team and the help that they are providing with this announcement. Uh, we did discuss turning in your board notes to executive director Loots from an HR perspective. Those do need to be kept in accordance with the data retention policies in Weisetta uh, for private personnel data. So, thank you for turning those into him. Uh, before you leave, I would like to give a special shout out to the team in Weisetta public schools. Um, internally, executive director Loots did a great deal of coordination, particularly with day in the district. It was a lot of work and he was a phenomenal point person for me on a number of things relative to the search. Um, Amy G and Amy Parnell were also points of contact for me and I want to appreciate all their hard work. It was a very smooth process because of the partnership we were able to have with your staff. I also want to thank every single board member. Uh, it's a lot of work. You've put in a lot of time. Hopefully, you'll sleep well tonight. I'd like to give special thanks to the subcommittee that invested so much time last week uh with those six semi- finalist interviews and the deliberation because it was also very difficult. Um so chair Sony thank you for that. Uh director Katering director erys thank you for the time you spent on that as well. I would ask if it's all right that I send you a brief survey uh to help you evaluate our superintendent search services. I think I said way back in November that we have a continuous improvement model and feedback from board members and district points of contact help us get better every year. So I will send you a very short survey if you have time in the next few days while it's still fresh in your mind. I'd appreciate any feedback you can share with MSBA about your experience with this search. Um our official role in the search is done although you will see me at MSBA events in the future and I will come back for a transition workshop. I'll reach out in July uh to schedule something with the new board team to talk about the first year with the superintendent and the board team. We'll talk about expectations for that first year, performance evaluation metrics, what it is you are looking for from the new leader, how you will measure it and make sure that we're all on the same page because that first year will be a lot of work as well. Uh let's see. I hope you feel like this was your search, not MSBA's search. That is the goal for all the work that we do is board ownership because it belongs to you and you own all the decisions. But I hope you felt you also had the information needed to make very good decisions for what's best for the students that go to Weisetta public schools. That is always our goal. Please reach out anytime. You have my cell number in your uh cell phones. So please call me, text, and uh we were truly honored to help you with the search. So on behalf of everyone at MSBA, particularly our executive search team, thank you very very much. That's all I have. >> Thank you. Thank you, Barb. Uh the the I'm sorry. The the feeling is mutual. We appreciate your help. We started in November. This is March 6th and almost 4 months. Yes, the subcommittee met for what 25 hours plus last week. >> Uh it was definitely tiring. But when the outcome is achieved, when you are looking at a goal and you reach that goal, I think the tiredness goes away. We are happy. We are really happy that we we were able to achieve this. I want to thank my board colleagues. I it's I can't thank you enough for the help for the you know collaboration and this was absolutely a smooth process. Absolutely. I think this went very well and thank you uh director Luds uh Amy Parnell and the executive team Amy G and whoever helped us in you know obviously the community in a big way and u I I all I won't say is I look forward to doing this again no at least at least not soon. So this this is definitely a long process the very very exciting tiring but also um the outcome the end goal was was happy. So thank you so much. All right anybody wants to make Yeah. Heidi >> I just want to say thank you to everybody. Thank you for the team for being here today and for giving our candidates the best day yesterday. I was I I loved knowing that you were out and about showing our our schools off like this is Weisetta and it it's it's an opportunity to let others in and see the amazing things that we're doing and you did a fantastic job with that and I know that it's a really unique thing that we did the day in the district and I know it was exhausting for you. It was exhausting for the students and the teachers and the admin. It was a lot but thank you for everybody who touched that day yesterday. And then I also want to say one last thing. This is an incredibly exciting phase. So Dr. Anderson always talks about I'm not going to get emotional because this is a transition. Um but he always talks about the transition at graduation and this feels like his graduation. And um I'm really excited that we were able to bring in a really competent, smart, driven successor. And so this is a really great time for our community and I hope our community is celebrating today because this is the next phase. This is our next hockey stick growth and we should all be ready for it. Yeah. So Barb um SAT members thank you for all your help. Um we really got good feedback from community. Um the way they were kept in the loop whether it is communication whether it is you know different engagements and feedback uh from different constituents right students parents community members teachers I think it was really great. Um I think the process was well articulated. Um how we gather inputs how you synthesize the data for all of us that helped a lot. There was lot of data but again the how it was presented to us was really in the consumable way and again special thank you to subcommittee. You guys have spent lot more hours behind the scenes uh but you went through lot of efforts to bring these three solid candidates in front of us. Um so thank you all for all your help and support. Heidi Melen Valentina and even uh sorry both of you who reached out to um different references this week. Uh turning that around in such a short period of time was really great. So again it felt like we got all the information all the data points on time in the right way. um so we could make you know the decision. So again really happy with the process, really happy with you know how it was conducted. So thank you everyone for all your help and support. >> All right. So if there are no other >> I know everyone said a lot. I just want to just summarize that I've learned so much on this process and I am looking forward to any questions that may come from our community to better understand how thorough we actually have been. I think it's hard sometimes if you're not following along very closely and everyone has busy lives, but I'm I've I've learned so much. I've been really impressed and I'm really proud of this board. I know I'm new to this group, but I'm so excited for what we're going to be able to achieve together and especially with the new superintendent coming in. So, thank you all. Barb, you've been amazing. I've gotten such great feedback from you or about you to from our community members who have interacted with you. And as always, I appreciate all of our administrators. And I wish that there could have been some video cameras, maybe like a liveaction film that could have come out of yesterday's >> dash cam. We should have done a dash cam. I'm pretty sure Dana broke some rules on the road, so that that would not have been good. >> The mic. >> Thank you, Alicia. Do you feel like you are a two-year veteran, not a two month? >> I mean, I did I just had to look at the, you know, it's not even been two full months, guys. So, thank you. Thank you for the warm welcome. >> Great job, though. Thank you. Yes. I just wanted to say uh for me okay I never majority of a community probably don't know uh but when I hear from several instances uh when my my outcomes were written not very good uh and that's why for me an education is a big deal because an education brought to me to USA. I was able to pay for the second education using um orphan money because I prioritized uh getting second education to have a betterment and um and to see to be able I mean to be honest several times I was thinking if my grandma would have only know that I not only would move from city to city I would move from country to country and I would be able to be included in such kind of I mean we basically were hiring CEO and I am there that also made me sometimes kind of what what I am doing I mean uh these are such big figures and I'm supposed to judge them and I'm supposed to so it is humbling experience it's definitely humbling experience but at the same time I saw se several um of them sharing their per personal experiences too how they had difficulty at the beginning of their life but then um there is a phrase what doesn't kill you make you stronger uh they brought that perspective into education and I think that um having um new superintendent who comes also from educational background and valuing education. It makes gives me comfort. I I'll make this short I promise. Just taking everything everyone said just ditto ditto. Thank you everyone so much. >> Okay, so sounds good. Uh so this concludes the Wisetta public school special regular board meeting. The next regular school board work session or actually we we have a board meeting on Monday the 9th March 9th at 7:00 and uh the time now is 5:40. Uh is there a motion to adjurnn? >> I so move. >> Second move and seconded. All in favor say I. >> I oppose. Nay. The motion carries. is the Visetta Public Schools Board of Education special regular meeting for Friday, March 6th, 2026 is adjourned.