Search is on for Siefkin's replacement

Folsom Cordova Unified School District Board members voted 5-0 Saturday to hire the consultant firm Leadership Associates to conduct the search for a new school superintendent.Norm Siefkin has served the Folsom Cordova Unified School District for six years and will retire at the end of the school year. The board held interviews with four firms on Thursday and made a decision over the weekend on which one to hire.Leadership Associates, based in San Diego, won the contract with a $27,500 bid. Board Member Teresa Stanley called their interview "polished.""They will adequately represent us," Stanley said, noting the firm will look for someone who understands what the school district and the community wants in a superintendent.The Southern California firm placed the highest bit, while the next lowest bid was at $24,500 by 4Administrators, and the other firms came in at $19,500 and $14,750.CSBA, the firm bidding $19,500, estimated additional costs at $6,700 for travel, advertising and mailings.RJ Gatti Associates, which came in at the low bid, also estimated additional costs would come in at $2,700 more for advertising, travel and brochures.4Administrators listed brochures as an additional cost, but did project an amount, according to school district documents.Leadership Associates did not list anything costing extra in their bid.Locally, Leadership Associates recently recruited candidates to the fill the superintendent voids at the Sacramento County Office of Education, the Elk Grove Unified School District and the Sacramento City Unified School District.At a glanceLeadership Associates hired to perform search for new district superintendentThe bid came in at $27,500. Leadership Associates has placed superintendents in the Elk Grove Unified School District, Sacramento County Office of Education and Sacramento City Unified School District.Input from the public, school staff, the unions, and community leaders will be sought on what qualities are being looked for the in the new superintendent.The search is projected to take about 16 weeks.Leadership Associates said they should be able to find a qualified replacement for Siefkin in 16 weeks. The other firms claimed similar timelines.During the recruiting process, Robert Trigg of Leadership Associates, who is a former superintendent of the Elk Grove Unified School District, said they will spend time talking to the district staff, faculty, community leaders and the general public to see what qualities they are looking for in a superintendent.From there, they will create a superintendent profile of the qualities that would best fit the district. They will then do an exhaustive background search on each of the candidates that will eventually be interviewed by the school board."Frequently, the people who get the jobs weren't looking for a job at the time," Trigg said, of superintendents. "They get along with their board, and are happy where they are."Trigg said there aren't that many candidates out there since many are happy in their current positions. He told the school board that if they can't find a strong candidate, he would tell them that.Siefkin was originally scheduled to retire in December, but agreed to remain through the end of the school year to give the board additional time to find a replacement.The board hopes to select a new superintendent by the end of April.