the search for a SUPERINTENDENT The Lewisville ISD board of trustees established a timeline for hiring its new superintendent before the 2022-23 school year.
ABOUT LORI RAPP Lori Rapp, Lewisville ISD’s deputy superintendent, was named the sole finalist for the district’s top administrative position. She previously served the district in other capacities. 1996: Math teacher at The Colony High School 2004: Secondary math teacher on special assignment 2008: Lewisville ISD director of pre-K-12 curriculum
Nov. 29, 2021 The position of superintendent is posted, and the application period officially opens.
Jan. 10, 2022 The application period for superintendent closes.
Jan. 2022 Trustees review applications, select candidates to interview, discuss contract terms and finalize interview questions.
Jan. 25, 2022 The board names Lori Rapp as the lone finalist.
March 2022 The board will formally vote to hire the new superintendent after a state- mandated 21-day waiting period.
Nov. 2, 2021 Former Superintendent Kevin Rogers announced his retirement, which was effective Jan. 31.
SOURCE: LEWISVILLE ISD/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
Kevin Rogers
2011: Executive director of learning design and support 2015: Chief learning and teaching officer 2017: Deputy superintendent
safety because she said, “Without that, you don’t have instruction.” Hiring challenges The Texas Association of School Administrators offers learning oppor- tunities and advocacy efforts for state superintendents and other school administrators. Kevin Brown, the association’s executive director, said superintendents throughout the state are finding it difficult to satisfy every- one with just about any decision. “The divisive nature of politics today makes it very difficult to really focus on the children because the adults are taking so much of the oxy- gen out of the space,” Brown said. “Once you’re deprived of being able to focus on your students [and] focus on serving your community, then you don’t feel like you’re fulfilling your mission. That’s why you’re seeing so many superintendents [resign]. “Our state is losing some extraordi- nary leaders.” Cron agreed, noting there are greater numbers of superintendent openings this year. In North Texas, for example, there are superintendent openings in Richardson, Plano, North- west, Dallas and Fort Worth ISDs as of Feb. 14. One reason, she noted, is the last of the baby boomer generation is
staff and community feedback ses- sions were held where parents and staff shared what they would like to see in a superintendent. A survey conducted by the district received 4,180 responses. In that, integrity and transparency were among the top qualities respon- dents wanted to see. When looking for superintendent candidates, Hernandez said as a par- ent she wanted to see a diverse pool of applicants. She wants the district leader to repre- sent the diverse students in the district. At LISD, the student pop- ulation is 10.7% African American, 29.6% Hispanic and 41.3% white. The remaining 18.5% of students are American Indian, Asian, Pacific Islander, two or more races, according to the district. Hernandez said she liked how the district held feedback sessions, but she wanted to see more transpar- ency with the search. She wanted to
getting ready to retire. The other rea- son is COVID-19. “This pandemic has resulted in a somewhat divided community—over the wearing of masks, quarantining
Lori Rapp
and vaccines,” she said. Finding a superintendent
After Rogers announced his retire- ment as superintendent, the board of trustees created a timeline and candi-
SOURCE: LEWISVILLE ISD/ COMMUNITY IMPACT
date profile to find the right person to fill the position. The goal for the boardwas to name a sole finalist by February and have the person start in the position by spring or summer this year, accord- ing to the district. “Lewisville ISD is a tremendous school district, and certainly we wanted to find a candidate who
know how many people applied and who the board decided to interview, she said. More than 20 people applied for the position, and the board interviewed five of those applicants, Miller said. Two candidates interviewed in the second round. Hernandez said she is excited to see Rapp, an internal candidate, be named sole finalist. “I’m all about internal growth. It is great they are trying to grow from within,” Hernandez said. “It is great to have someone who knows the district.” William C. Wadsack contributed to this story.
“TOHAVE A CHANCE TOMAKE APOSITIVE DIFFERENCE IN THE LIFEOFACHILDEACH AND EVERYDAY IS WHY I AMPROUD TOBE APUBLIC SCHOOL EDUCATOR.” LORI RAPP, SUPERINTENDENT FINALIST
would continue the strong traditions found throughout LISD,” Miller said. “It was also important to find some- one who had an eye on the future.” To help with the process, the board turned to the community. Several
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
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LEWISVILLE - FLOWER MOUND - HIGHLAND VILLAGE EDITION • FEBRUARY 2022
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