Chambersburg school board reopening superintendent search, but is 'not unified'

The school board is starting over in its search for a superintendent to lead the Chambersburg Area School District.

This time, the board will bring on a hiring consultant to help find the best person to lead the 9,000-student district in Franklin County.

After about six months of work that included a series of forums where the public, teachers and administrators could share what characteristics they wanted in the district's next leader, the process ground to a halt after the first round of candidate interviews, according to Region 6 director Ed Norcross.

"At the end of the day, the board could not come to a consensus," he said in an interview this week.

Norcross, who is leading the superintendent search and is also the board's vice president, announced at the Feb. 28 board meeting that the board was reopening the superintendent search. He said he was sharing the update with "honesty and humility" and said that he should be the one blamed for the failure of the original search.

“The part that I did not see … is that when it came time to make this decision — I think everyone, the whole board, everyone individually — understood what was at stake here, the importance of this decision and the gravity of this decision," he said. "The part that we didn’t get done was coming to a consensus. If there's a fault with that, you put Ed Norcross' name on that."

The board is accepting proposals and hopes to choose a consultant by the end of the month, Norcross told Public Opinion. The decision will be based on what is "best for Chambersburg," he said.

The goal initially was to hire a new superintendent at the March 28 board meeting, Norcross said in September.

Norcross on Tuesday said he did not have the number of total applicants, and he refused to reveal how many candidates were interviewed.

He reiterated concerns he made at the board meeting about candidates' confidentiality. He said the names of the candidates have not been released publicly because some did not want their current employers to know they were seeking another job.

Several candidates ultimately withdrew from consideration, Norcross said.

One of them was Acting Superintendent Kurt Widmann. A long-time administrator in CASD, he sent an email to district staff to inform them of his decision. He shared the email with Public Opinion.

"This week I have informed the CASD school board of directors that I am formally removing my name from consideration for the position. After consulting with family and colleagues, I have decided that it is in the best interest of the district for me to step back from the search process and to allow the board to consider other candidates," he wrote.

Widmann added that as acting superintendent, he will "remain committed to working with the board and the new superintendent to ensure a smooth transition and a seamless handover of responsibilities."

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CASD board 'not unified' on superintendent search

Region 9 director Ben Raber was the only board member to speak at the meeting. Region 4 director Lance Walker declined to comment via email. None of the other board members — Mark Schur, Region 2; Faye Gaugler, Region 1; Sherian Diller Region 3; William Lennartz Jr., Region 5; Joan Smith, Region 7; and Carl McKee, Region 8 — responded to individual emails.

Raber said he does not support the board reopening the search and thinks they had a candidate with whom they should have moved forward.

"We are not unified about this as a board," he said.

A third-party consultant, or at least a human resources or legal representative, should have been a part of the process in the first place, Raber said. He raised concerns that few quality candidates would apply the second time around.

"Personally, I'm concerned about the direction we are heading. It feels like a gamble to me."

Last CASD superintendent abruptly resigned

Dion Betts resigned in June, two years before the end of his five-year contract. He joined the district ahead of the 2019-20 school year, and his contract was to end June 30, 2024.

The district paid him about $300,000 in severance, according to the separation agreement.

Betts' departure came about quickly, Norcross said at the time. The separation agreement included language stating neither Betts nor CASD alleged any wrongdoing by the other party.

Previously, the Chambersburg school district had not seen frequent turnover in the superintendent's office. Betts succeeded Joseph Padasak, who served 13 years through the 2018-19 school year.

Padasak followed Ed Sponseller, who led CASD from 1988 to 2006.

Amber South can be reached at asouth@publicopinionnews.com.