Six in the hunt for MCHS principal’s post

Four applicants currently hold jobs as principals, while the other two are assistant principals within the Madison County School System.

“It’s the deepest pool that I’ve seen since I’ve been here,” Superintendent Mitch McGhee said.

Interviews will conclude Friday, with next week reserved for additional interviews if needed.

“If one person is head-and-shoulders above everybody else, we’ll go with that,” McGhee said. “But if there’s two or three people that it’s real tight, we may bring them back for a second interview.”

Current principal Tommy Craft accepted the superintendent’s post in Emanuel County in March and will leave MCHS following graduation exercises.

The high school vacancy drew 71 applications, though 25 of those didn’t meet the minimum requirements for the principal position.

But the applicant pool was still strong, McGhee said. The system received at least a dozen applications from current principals.

“There were a lot that didn’t even get an interview,” McGhee said.

The system doesn’t usually receive this many applications from “sitting principals,” McGhee said. Madison County usually attracts assistant principals eying a career move or retired administrators wishing to return to education, he said.

“We’ve had several of those folks and those folks have done a good job for us,” McGhee said. “But having so many sitting principals apply, I think it’s a sign that we’re getting to where we want to be.”

Limited job openings in a bad economy likely helped spur interest in MCHS, McGhee said. But he felt that the system has plenty to offer, too.

“Certainly, part of it is the economy,” McGhee said. “But I think part of it, too, is that we are become an attractive place to be.”

An interview committee selected most all of the candidates, though McGhee reserved the right to make one selection.

“I think this group would have picked them anyway,” he added.

McGhee will interview each candidate, as will the interview committee. Each member will rank the applicant in a number of categories and compile composite score.

McGhee said at the board of education’s April 14 meeting that those scores would play a significant role in his decision.

The superintendent hopes to make a recommendation for a new hire at the BOE’s May 12 meeting.