Pekin school board to interview four applicants for superintendent

PACKWOOD — The Pekin Community School Board plans to interview four candidates for superintendent in the coming days, and hopes to make a decision on a new hire June 15.

Pekin School Board President J.J. Greiner said the board plans to interview one superintendent candidate during a closed session at its meeting Monday, June 13, and three more candidates during a special meeting two days later on June 15. He said the candidate being interviewed Monday could not come Wednesday, so the board make special arrangements with that person.

Greiner said the school board members plan to deliberate after all the interviews on June 15 and make a selection so that the new interim superintendent can begin their duties July 1. That is when Pekin’s contract with current superintendent Kevin Hatfield will expire. Pekin and Sigourney had been sharing a superintendent for almost a decade, but the Sigourney school board voted in May to end the sharing agreement.

The interim superintendent’s contract will last one year, and the salary will depend on the person’s experience. This winter, the board will start a superintendent search again that will be conducted according to a more normal timeline, unlike the short timeline the board must follow to hire an interim superintendent this month.