The search for a new superintendent to serve both St. Louis County Schools and Mountain Iron-Buhl Public School is advancing, with upcoming meetings scheduled later this month and in early February.
The new superintendent will replace Dr. Reggie Engebritson, who is retiring June 30 after more than eight years leading the two districts. Engebritson began serving as interim superintendent on Jan. 2, 2018, and was hired as full-time superintendent in February 2018.
Engebritson is an employee of St. Louis County Schools (Independent School District 2142) and is contracted to serve as superintendent of Mountain Iron-Buhl Public School (Independent School District 712), a structure that will continue with the incoming superintendent.
The Minnesota School Boards Association has been contracted to guide and assist the boards throughout the search process.
According to the St. Louis County Schools website, the school boards will meet next on Thursday, Jan. 29, to determine finalists for the superintendent position and finalize interview questions and procedures. Names of the finalists will be released once they are offered an interview, according to Superintendent Search Lead Lee Warne of the MSBA.
The first round of in-person interviews are scheduled to take place during special board meetings on Feb. 9 and Feb. 12, both at 4 p.m. The interviews are open to the public and will be held at the St. Louis County Schools office at 1701 North Ninth Avenue in Virginia.
Second-round interviews and reference checks are scheduled for Feb. 14, when the boards are expected to select a lone finalist and set the negotiation process.
The search process began Nov. 19, with a special planning meeting in which the two school boards adopted a timeline and reviewed hiring criteria and procedures. Public input was gathered through a survey available from Nov. 25 through Dec. 17.
From Dec. 2 through Jan. 20, the Minnesota School Boards Association advertised the vacancy on local, regional and national platforms, accepted applications and responded to applicant inquiries. The association also hosted a virtual informational question-and-answer session Dec. 11, which was recorded and made available to the public online throughout the search.
On Jan. 7, the boards met for interview training and to review the public input report, proposed interview questions and interview procedures. The application deadline for the position was Jan. 20.
The MSBA conducted applicant screening, preliminary reference checks and pre-interviews or recommendations through Jan. 29, while board members review applications.
The new superintendent is scheduled to begin work July 1, serving both ISD 2142 and ISD 712 in the same shared role currently held by Engebritson.
St. Louis County Schools include Cherry School, North Woods School, Northeast Range School, South Ridge School, and Tower- Soudan Elementary School. Mountain Iron-Buhl Public School is located in Mountain Iron.
