During a meeting on Tuesday night, the School Board of Alachua County (SBAC) voted to move forward with the Request for Proposals (RFP) process to seek out search firms nationwide to help the district find a permanent superintendent.  

Dr. Kamela Patton has been serving as the district’s interim superintendent since November 2024. This followed a split vote by the SBAC to fire former Superintendent Shane Andrew in October 2024.  

The RFP was among three different search process options Deborah Terry, assistant superintendent for human resources, presented to board members at Tuesday’s meeting.  

The other two options were direct contract with a single experienced, qualified firm and a Request for Information (RFI) with multiple qualified firms.  

In her presentation to the board, Terry said the RFP takes roughly six to eight weeks for the whole process to be completed. She added that the cost is about the same as the other two options – $48,000 to $55,000 – but that it could increase “depending on the level of service.” 

Where the RFP option differs from the other two, Terry said, is with the timeframe. 

Terry said the RFP is advertised and open for submission of proposals, noting the district does not choose the firms.  

“We put it out there, and then firms come to us,” she said.  

Once the purchasing department has held the public opening of the submissions and verifies that each one follows the requirements (Terry said that would typically take one to three days, depending on the number of submissions), they are then sent to the Proposal Evaluation Committee (PEC) for review, according to Terry’s presentation. 

In terms of who serves on the PEC, Jeff Garcia, the district’s purchasing manager, said that it is “to be determined.”  

“Once we actually advertise the solicitation, then we’ll determine, with input from senior staff, who that evaluation committee will be for this type of procurement,” he said. “We haven’t done it in my tenure in 10 years. I would expect at least five or seven committee members – members of the public, members of staff, members of administration – to provide as many varying opinions as possible…” 

Terry said the PEC looks over the submissions individually, noting this process normally takes one to two weeks. She added that this culminates “with a public meeting to review the scoring and finalization of a short list” of search firms. 

“The short list of firms are recommended to come in for an in-person interview with the board,” Terry said. 

Terry said the short list of firms then gives their presentations to board members. The board then discusses and votes to decide which firm will be awarded the contract. 

Two to four weeks after the vote, Terry said the firm granted the contract will meet with board members “to outline the process and to finalize the calendar for the search and for the selection process.” 

“Once the calendar and timeline are set, then the superintendent search or selection process actually begins,” she said.  

Terry said in addition to the costs associated with the search firm, the district is also responsible for covering travel and lodging expenses for finalists. 

A motion was made by Board Member Thomas Vu to direct the district’s purchasing department to issue an RFP from qualified firms for a nationwide superintendent search. The motion was seconded by Board Member Tina Certain. 

During the discussion period, Board Member Leanetta McNealy proposed an amendment to Vu’s motion for the board to not only vote on which search process option to go with, but also the timeframe for the search. 

Under her current contract, Patton is supposed to serve in her interim role until June 2026. However, she recently stated that she would entertain staying for an additional year if it was needed.  

McNealy said extending Patton’s contract “is not acceptable” to her. 

“Dr. Patton has been standing with us for a couple of months. In fact, it’s no longer a couple months – for one year…,” McNealy said. “But we need someone for the long, long haul.” 

Vu agreed with McNealy that a search does need to start. However, he also feels that the district is not prepared for a new superintendent to come in by July 2026. 

“My number one fear is moving too quickly, having a failed search, and then that’s a huge black mark on us,” Vu said. “And that’s a reputation cost I’m not willing to bear.” 

Vu said he was OK with moving forward with the motion on the floor as is.  

Later in the meeting, Garcia offered some clarification on the timeline component of the search. 

“That timeline will be established between the five board members and the [search] firm once that firm has been identified,” he said. “So, if we move forward with the RFP process…we still will not be awarding a firm.” 

The board ultimately approved Vu’s motion unanimously. 

Nick Anschultz is a Report for America corps member and writes about education for Mainstreet Daily News. This position is supported by local donations through the Community Catalyst for Local Journalism Fund at the Community Foundation of North Central Florida.