The MTUESD School Board approved the separation of Superintendent
and principal at the April 2012 board meeting, MTUESD Superintendent / Copper Principal.
In January 2011 Tidball took the Superintendent position as
well as working as the Copper Elementary principal, understanding that the board
would reinstate separate positions at a time when it was “financially feasible”
said Tidball.
Tidball will assume the Superintendent position full time at the
end of this fiscal year.
This change as well as the resignation of Mark Twain school
principal Karl Keller due to his acceptance of a position at Salida Union
School District, left two principal positions vacant at the end of this school
year.
According to Tidball the notice for those positions was
posted for 2.5 weeks and received quite a few applicants both from the outside
the school district and “in house.” Interviews have commenced with a 10 member
interview committee including classified staff, parents, and teachers. “The
second round of interviews will occur tonight.” Said Tidball. She is hoping
that the committee will recommend candidates and hopes to announce soon the
ones that have been offered and accepted the positions.
When asked if this was a fiscally sound idea, Tidball stated
that there were funds that had been set aside for important priority needs that
had to be met and those needs have now been met. Tidball stated, “I would not
go into a full time position unless we were able to address these other needs
first. We have added more teachers for class size reduction, more library personnel
and yard duty supervisors. And I’m excited to say we have adopted a new English
Language Arts program for next year. We have a projected budget for three years
with prioritized steps.” At a recent
board meeting Tidball stated that the Board approved a “cost of living
increase of 2.5% across the board for all staff except me.”
