LCC Bd. narrows field to four

LAUREL  — Steps are moving ahead in the process of selecting the next Laurel-Concord-Coleridge School Superintendent. The selection has been narrowed down to four candidates.

LCC School Board members met for four hours Sunday with Alan Harms and Jim Havelka, Consultants for the Nebraska Rural Community Schools Association.

Twenty-three applications for the LCC superintendent position had been received.

Harms and Havelka had compared the data on the resumes the candidates had submitted with the qualities, characteristics and skills LCC School board members had previously determined to be important.

School board members had also made a list that included five of the critical issues the school district will be facing in the next three to five years.

Harms and Havelka had divided the candidates into four tiers before Sunday’s meeting. Board members and the consultants reviewed and discussed the qualities of the candidates listed in the top two tiers, which included 12 of the candidates.

Several times during the discussion, board members made the decision to go into executive session.

Board members then narrowed the selection down to four candidates:

• Jeremy Christiansen, Elementary Principal Fairbury Public School.

• Kyle Finke, Elementary Principal Battle Creek School.

• Mike Halley, High School Principal Scottsbluff High School.

• Brad Hoesing, Supt. and 7-12 Principal Wausa Public School.

Both Halley and Hoesing have ties to the Laurel community. Halley is a former teacher and football coach for the Bears. He coached Laurel to a perfect 13-0 season and a state championship in 2000.

Hoesing played on that championship team and graduated from Laurel-Concord in 2001. He is the son of former Laurel-Concord Supt. Dan Hoesing.

Jeremy Christiansen and Mike Halley will interview at LCC School on March 12, and Brad Hoesing and Kyle Finke will interview at LCC School on March 13.

Interviews will be conducted by two committees and the school board members. One committee will include members of the community and the other committee will be made up of faculty and staff members.

The candidates will be given tours of the Laurel and Coleridge communities. They will also meet with the bookkeepers and tour the LCC School at the Laurel and Coleridge locations.

School Board members will review input from the two committees before making a final decision on the candidate for the superintendent position.

School Board President Steve Schutte is hoping board members will be able to make the final decision Tuesday evening after the interviews.

“Hopefully we will know on Tuesday evening, even if the meeting goes late into the evening. We want to be able to vote on the contract at the school board meeting on March 19,” Schutte said. “Of course, it could happen that we won’t decide to hire any of the ones we interviewed.”