Jacksonville district seeking schools chief

Wood leaving superintendent’s post, says it’s time to retire and go home

Tony Wood, the superintendent who guided into operation the brand new Jacksonville/North Pulaski School District, said Monday that he will resign the position effective June 30, 2017.

"When you selected me to be superintendent of the Jacksonville/North Pulaski School District fifteen months ago, I was often asked how long I intended to serve," Wood, 66, said in the letter that he distributed to School Board members. "My standard response has been that Jacksonville needed a superintendent who wanted to live in the community and who had several years of service to give. My home is Searcy, and I am ready for retirement."

The board voted 6-0 to accept the resignation at a meeting in which it earlier approved the payment of $1,200 bonuses to full-time employees and $600 to part-time employees. The one-time bonuses will be paid in two installments with the first half being paid Dec. 9 and the second half in May 2017.

The change in leadership comes after the 4,000-student Jacksonville/North Pulaski district officially detached from the Pulaski County Special district and began operating on its own this past July 1. The new district won approval of a 7.6 mill-tax increase in February and is in the early stages of constructing a new Jacksonville High School that will open in August 2019 and a new elementary school that will open in August 2018.

The district will begin advertising for Wood's replacement today and will accept applications through Nov. 17, according to the board's newly approved timeline that also calls for selecting a new leader as soon as the Dec. 5 board meeting but no later than its Jan. 9 meeting. The board will hold a special meeting Nov. 21 to review the applications, select finalists and establish a schedule for interviews.

School Board President Daniel Gray said after the meeting that the board will rely on help from Wood -- a 45-year educator -- in conducting the search for a replacement and will not employ a superintendent search firm. The job posting calls for a minimum of five years of experience as a superintendent. It also says that a doctorate degree is preferred. The salary is not listed, but Wood's annual salary is $160,000.

Wood became the superintendent of the district on July 1, 2014 after serving several years as deputy commissioner and then commissioner of the Arkansas Department of Education. He was a long-time superintendent of the Searcy School District before that.

Jacksonville-area residents had voted in September 2014 in support of forming their own school district separate from the Pulaski County Special district. The Arkansas Board of Education in November 2014 ordered the establishment of the new district but directed that it operate under the direction of the Pulaski Special district for up to two more years during which time a school board would be elected, financial arrangements made, policies written and staff hired.

"I'm proud of what we have accomplished," Wood wrote to the board."I've been surrounded by a talented, dedicated team. Together we've established a brand new school district--something that has never happened before in Arkansas. We have started the hard, earnest work that change requires.

"I have great respect for you as the Board of Education and individually as motivated people striving to make a positive contribution to education and the children of this community," he continued.

Wood called the Jacksonville community "tremendous" and said it has provided him with the opportunity to do "some of the most exciting work in my career."

Gray said that he knew that Wood never planned to stay in the job for a long period.

"But in the the sense that it's actually here and I actually saw it and received it, is kind of a shock," Gray said about the resignation letter.

"He's been amazing," Gray said.

Metro on 11/08/2016

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