Top school post filled in Conway

FILE — This 2015 file photo shows public school buses. (AP Photo/File)
FILE — This 2015 file photo shows public school buses. (AP Photo/File)

CONWAY -- The Conway School Board unanimously voted Tuesday to hire Jeff Collum -- a former superintendent of the Benton School District -- as its next superintendent.

"This task of hiring the next superintendent, the next leader for our school district, is the most important task a school board has," Board President Trip Leach said. "It has been our priority from the beginning of this process to be sure we honor the monumental responsibility that is upon us."

The decision came after a nearly six-month search, which began June 20 to replace Superintendent Greg Murry, who has filled the role since 2007. He is scheduled to retire next June.

Murry declined to comment on the hiring when approached after the meeting.

The board unanimously approved a contract that will begin July 1, 2021, and continue through June 30, 2024, to pay Collum $220,000 annually. Other compensation includes the use of a vehicle for business and personal use and the district will pay for all costs related to use of the vehicle, including fuel.

Murry's salary is $235,057.

The contract requires Collum to relocate to Conway and live within the school district throughout his employment. He will be reimbursed for moving and relocation expenses up to $9,000.

Collum will also receive $1,000 per month in addition to his salary and has 15 days of vacation per year.

The board also approved a "consulting agreement" between Collum and the Conway School District. The agreement runs from June 1-30, 2021, and will pay Collum $975 per day.

The agreement does not list any specific duties Collum will perform during that month before his official start date.

The field had been narrowed to three contenders: Collum; West Memphis School District Superintendent Jon Collins; and Russellville School District Superintendent Mark Gotcher.

Leach said Collum has both the qualities and the qualifications to serve as the Conway district's next superintendent.

"Jeff Collum has a proven track record of success. We are excited to work with him to set goals for the future of Conway Public Schools together," Leach said. "His commitment and dedication to hard work, financial stewardship, data-driven decisions, and the value of all stakeholders gives us full confidence moving forward in the days to come."

Collum is now the superintendent of the Independent School District in Hallsville, Texas. He was previously superintendent in Benton. Before that, Collum was the executive director of secondary education in Tyler, Texas. He has also worked as a high school principal, assistant principal, teacher and coach in other Texas school districts. He has 15 years of administrative experience.

According to a document provided by the Conway School Board, Collum is well-known throughout the nation for his work and insight on school safety initiatives. He has strong experience in school finance, technology, and virtual learning. Collum has been named "Administrator of the Year" twice, in Texas in 2010 and in Arkansas in 2014.

He is a Texas native. He and his wife, Cara, live in Longview, Texas, with their three sons.

The Conway School Board signed a $15,000 contract with the search firm McPherson and Jacobson LLC of Nebraska to conduct the search.

Kieth Williams, an associate professor of education at Harding University in Searcy, has led the search with the former president of the Arkansas Initiative for Mathematics and Science Inc., Ken James, as consultants for McPherson and Jacobson.

The search firm advertised nationwide for applicants and personally recruited others, Williams said. The finalists were chosen out of 24 applications received.

The School Board involved the community, including students, teachers, staff members and parents, in the search. The board held a community forum to ask parents and community leaders what they wanted in a superintendent.

The three finalists were selected after the board viewed video interviews of a handful of candidates who made it past the search firm's weeding process.

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