The Barnesville (Minn.) School Board selected four Minnesota principals as superintendent finalists, including the leading candidate for the district's top job in 2005.
Current Barnesville superintendent Steve Jordahl leaves this summer to take over the St. Cloud district, one of the 20 largest in Minnesota. He landed the Barnesville job in 2005 after Terry Karger, the K-12 principal in Frazee-Vergas (Minn.) Public Schools and a finalist for this latest opening, turned down a district offer.
As in 2005, School Board members decided not to use a superintendent search firm and each sifted through the 14 applications the district received. All seven members voted for candidates they thought should be interviewed. The four who won the most votes will visit the district on June 2 and 3.
"I think we got some really good applicants out of it," said Chairman Chad Holland. "I was pleased."
Holland said he and fellow board members aren't concerned that none of the finalists has superintendent experience. Neither did Jordahl when the 800-student district welcomed him from Alexandria, where he served as principal.
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In 2005, Jordahl oversaw the passage of an $800-per-pupil levy referendum in Barnesville. He recently spearheaded a project to renovate and expand the district's two schools - an initiative his successor will likely have to sell to taxpayers.
The finalists are:
- Karger, who said in a phone interview he bowed out of the 2005 Barnesville search strictly for personal reasons.
"Now the opportunity has arisen again, and I and my family are more than ready for it," said Karger, who last year helped Frazee-Vergas pass a $1,000-per-student levy referendum.
Holland said board members wouldn't hold the 2005 refusal against Karger, who has served as Frazee-Vergas principal for seven years: "He's still a very good applicant, just with three more years of experience."
- Greg Winter, high school principal in Fergus Falls, who was also a finalist for Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton superintendent earlier this year.
- Mark Miley, junior high school principal in Willmar.
- Scott Loeslie, elementary principal in Tracy.
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Loeslie and Winter will interview at 6:30 and 8 p.m., respectively, on June 2. Interviews for Miley and Karger are at 6:30 and 8 p.m. the next day. The interviews are open to the public.
The board hopes to sign a one- to three-year full-time contract with one of the finalists by its June 16 meeting.
Readers can reach Forum reporter Mila Koumpilova at (701) 241-5529
