Candidates selected for SLPS superintendent position

Mon, Mar 10, 2008    to del.icio.us

SPRING LAKE — Six candidates, all from Michigan and two from Spring Lake, will be interviewed later this week for the Spring Lake Public Schools superintendent position.

The SLPS Board of Education met in special session Saturday afternoon to review the 22 applicants and select those it wished to interview.

Of those chosen, two are currently employed by the Spring Lake school district. Mark Westerburg is the district's interim superintendent and had been serving as the director of curriculum and operations. Mike Gilchrist is currently the principal at Spring Lake High School.

The other four candidates are Dennis Furton, superintendent at Bath Community Schools in Bath; Catherine Ash, deputy superintendent at Okemos Public Schools in Okemos; Elizabeth Godwin, superintendent at Decatur Public Schools in Decatur; and Roger Thelen, superintendent at Central Montcalm Public Schools in Stanton.

All are seeking to fill the spot left vacant after longtime superintendent Larry Mason retired in January.

Board of Education President Madonna Kramer said the board reached a consensus "quite quickly" on Saturday. Board members were given the candidates' background information well in advance and came to the meeting prepared with their top candidates.

Kramer said it took just three rounds of voting to narrow the pool down to the top six.

"These individuals are the ones we strongly feel are qualified," she said. "We're very excited about the talent pool."

She also noted the candidates' diverse backgrounds: Two of the external candidates come from districts half the size of Spring Lake, one works at a district approximately the same size and the fourth comes from a district twice the size of SLPS.

"They all will bring different talents and strengths," said Kramer. "We're looking forward to meeting them all and seeing what they have to offer."

The candidates

Catherine Ash has been the deputy superintendent at Okemos Public Schools since April 2003. She previously served as director of human resources for the Okemos district, and held assistant principal positions for both Hastings and DeWitt public schools.

Ash has a Doctor of Philosophy degree in education administration from Michigan State University, a Master of Arts degree in K-12 administration from MSU and a Bachelor of Science degree in mathematics/biology from Central Michigan University.

Dennis Furton has held the superintendent position at Bath Community Schools since 2006. He previously served as principal for both Glen Lake Community Schools in Maple City and Onekama Consolidated Schools in Onekama, and as assistant principal for Ball High School/Galveston ISD in Galveston, Texas.

Furton is currently a doctoral candidate in the field of educational leadership at Central Michigan University. He holds a Master of Science degree in educational leadership from the University of Houston and a Bachelor of Science degree in English from Michigan State University.

Mike Gilchrist has been the principal at Spring Lake High School since 2001. He was previously a high school principal, assistant principal and athletic director in Shelby.

Gilchrist holds a master's degree in educational administration from Central Michigan University and a bachelor's degree in biology and history from Olivet College.

Elizabeth Godwin has held the superintendent position at Decatur Public Schools since September 2001. She previously served as both interim and assistant superintendent, as well as middle school principal, for Belding Area Schools. She also held principal positions in Georgia and Wisconsin.

Godwin has a Doctor of Philosophy degree in educational administration and communicative disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She also holds a Master of Science degree in communicative disorders from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire and a Bachelor of Arts degree in speech pathology from the University of Missouri-Columbia.

Roger Thelen has served as superintendent for Central Montcalm Public Schools since 1995. He was previously superintendent for Colon Community Schools in Colon and director of community affairs for Lakeshore Public Schools in Stevensville. He also worked as director of adult and community education for Fulton Schools in Middleton.

Thelen has a Master of Arts degree in educational leadership and a Bachelor of Science degree in education (physical education and political science), both from Central Michigan University. He has also completed 37 hours of post-graduate study on the topics of superintendency and educational leadership.

Mark Westerburg has been the interim superintendent for Spring Lake Public Schools since January, and was the director of curriculum and operations for the district since 2001. He previously served the district as a high school principal and assistant principal. He has also been the superintendent for Hinsdale Public Schools in Hinsdale, Mont.; and has held assistant principal and athletic director roles for Reed City Schools and Alcona Community Schools, both in Michigan.

Westerburg holds a Master of Arts degree in school administration from Central Michigan University and a Bachelor of Science degree from Ferris State University.

The interviews

Interviews will begin Thursday with the two internal candidates. Gilchrist will be interviewed at 6:30 p.m., followed by Westerburg at 8 p.m.

On Friday, Furton's interview will begin at 6:30 p.m., followed by Ash at 8 p.m.

Godwin's interview will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday, followed by Thelen at 10:30 a.m.

All interviews will take place in the Spring Lake High School media center and will be open to the public. Community members will be invited to submit questions for the candidates and fill out critique forms after the interviews for board members to review.

The board will come to each interview with prepared questions, but will consider the audience-submitted questions if time permits.

Kramer said interviews should last about 75 minutes each; but, if necessary, they could take the entire allotted 90 minutes.

Second interviews for the top candidates are currently scheduled for March 25. Kramer had said previously that board members will also want to visit the districts of those candidates before making a decision.

The school board hopes to extend an offer by the beginning of April, and have a negotiated contract completed by the end of that month.