At least two area school district superintendents took the middle ground when asked their opinion regarding Senate Bill 2438, which Gov. Phil Bryant signed into law last week.

    Before Bryant signed the bill, 55 of the state’s 144 school districts elected their superintendents. The new law requires school boards to appoint their superintendents after their current term ends.

    Lauderdale County School District Superintendent Randy Hodges and Neshoba County School District Superintendent Joe Killens said the most important aspect of whether or not superintendents are appointed or elected is school boards appointing the most qualified individual, especially in smaller districts.

    Hodges was first elected in 1988 and has been through five campaigns and elections. He stands to be the last elected superintendent in the county when his term expires after the 2018-2019 school year.

    “When I was elected in 1988, the first week in office I was told ‘you would never have to worry about running again because (lawmakers) are going to change it to an appointed position,'” Hodges said. “I thought that was ironic because here we are. It has been a debate for many years now. The bottom line is, people like to have their right to elect their superintendent. It wasn’t politically correct to take that right away from them.”

    During his tenure, Hodges said he has experienced good and bad appointed and elected school district leaders.

    “I’ve seen some outstanding elected and appointed superintendents and some weak appointed and elected superintendents” he said. “I’ve seen both, so that’s my answer when you ask me what I think about should superintendents be appointed or elected. Appointing superintendents is not the answer, if it’s not done correctly.

    “I’ve seen some situations where districts didn’t have a qualified person to run and one or two who were interested,” Hodges recalled. “In the election, you took what you had. To be a candidate, you had to live in the county within the district for three years. That limited who might run.”  

    Hodges said having a  strong school board is imperative in the search for a district leader.

    “If done correctly with a solid five-member school board, I feel you have the best opportunity to get the superintendent for teachers and children,” Hodges said. “

    Like Hodges, other elected superintendents want to know if they will be eligible once the position is for appointed candidates. According to Speaker Pro Tem Greg Snowden, elected superintendents can be appointed after their current term expires.

    “If (citizens) like the guy they have, by all means they can reappoint them,” Snowden said. “The idea was smaller districts didn’t have a large qualified pool of candidates. I voted for the law.”

    Hodges said a superintendent’s responsibilities are great.

    “The demands and many responsibilities that go with being a superintendent are makes it very difficult to run a campaign in an election process. And it’s extremely expensive and time-consuming,” Hodges said. “In an election process, one of the advantages is that the superintendent can stay focused on the job every day.”

    Killens, who is in his first term in Neshoba County, had similar views.    “To be honest, I am one of the few elected superintendents that the new law really won’t affect,” Killens said. “I have tried my best since I took office to take the politics out of the position and my way of thinking really hasn’t changed since the governor signed the bill into law. Every decision I make is going to be for the good of the children in the Neshoba County School District and whether or not I am appointed in four years for an additional amount of time really does not cross my mind.”

    Killens said he has heard from angry voters concerning the law.

    “I have had several voters in Neshoba contact me complaining about the law because they feel it is taking away their rights as a citizen,” Killens said. “I can see both sides of the issue. Will an appointed person care as deeply about a district as one that has lived there for several years? In some cases, maybe not. Some areas in the state do not have a big number of qualified candidates and under the new law, they can reach out to increase the pool. I do not feel, however, that it will take the politics out of the position.”

    Killens said appointing superintendents could make the process more politicized.

    “In many ways, it could make it more political, depending on whether or not a particular board has an agenda,” Killens said. “I am very fortunate to have a board that wants the best for our students, and so far they have allowed me to make the decisions that I feel will benefit our children.”

    Like Hodges, Killens said he has seen good and bad elected and appointed school leaders.

    “If you look back over the last several years in our area, there have been some effective elected and appointed superintendents. There have also been some of each that were less than effective,” Killens said. There are no guarantees, regardless of the method of selection.”

    Killens said his concern is more on school funding than on how superintendents are chosen.

    “I am actually more concerned with K-12 getting the funding that we need than how the leader is selected,” Killens said. “So far, this has not been a great legislative session for the children of Mississippi. Many rural districts, including Neshoba, are struggling financially and sometimes it seems like we are asked to do more and more with less. For the first time in almost 29 years in this business, I am really concerned with the direction we are headed as a state.”