Steven Cobb

On May 17, Lee County School Board members will hold a workshop to determine who their top choice will be to fill the position of superintendent of schools, with a tentative hire date of June 1, so the chosen applicant can start on July 1 to be a part of next year’s budget process.

A community reception last week at the Lee County Public Education Center attracted a room full of district employees and area residents who wanted to meet the top four superintendent candidates and ask their own questions. The candidates met the Lee County School Board at the Veranda in downtown Fort Myers during a welcome dinner before private interviews began Thursday morning with each school board member.

An educational and familiarization tour of Lee County was also provided for the candidates the afternoon before. Board member Don Armstrong said he thought the interviews went well because he had the opportunity to grill the candidates on their strengths and weaknesses. He said the 40 to 45-minute interview gave him the chance to look for the candidates’ character because he already knew their accomplishments.

“All in all, I believe there was one gentleman that stuck out more than the rest,” he said. “He could do the job, but that is the problem, I think, but I want to be certain. Not one of them stood out that I’m 100 percent comfortable with.”

Armstrong said he wants to make sure the person he chooses is the right person for Lee County because it is a huge job. Board member Mary Fischer, on the other hand, said that there was one candidate that stood out to her. She said she enjoyed the interview process Thursday because it gave her the opportunity to get up close and personal with each candidate and observe their body language and facial expressions after she asked a question.

Constance Jones

Fischer said she was excited about the continued interviews the following day. The candidates had to do a mock board presentation, experienced based interview, writing prompt and a full school board interview.

“I think tomorrow is going to be a really big day,” Fischer said of last Friday’s session. “I know they are going to stand up to it because they were all well prepared.”

Steven Cobb, the chief academic officer of Fort Wayne Community Schools in Indiana, is one of the top four finalist vying for the job. The district he currently works for serves 31,568 students at 51 schools. The Fort Wayne Community School District employs 4,265 individuals, 2,052 which are teachers.

Cobb said Thursday’s interviews went well.

“I thought it went really well,” Cobb said. He said he enjoyed talking to the five board members on a one-on-one basis, along with learning what the community wants. Upon that list of issues was school choice, the school budget and transportation. He said he also thoroughly enjoyed the tour of Lee County. He said he would have enjoyed adding another hour and a half to the two-hour tour so he could see more of the district.

Joseph Burke

Nancy Graham