As of Thursday, January 26, 2012
© Copyright 2012
Rockdale Citizen
CONYERS — Rockdale County Public Schools Superintendent Samuel King is the sole finalist for a superintendent position in Louisiana.
The East Baton Rouge Parish School System announced late Wednesday that its Board of Education voted to invite King to the district as a finalist candidate for the superintendent position.
“I am truly honored to be considered as the finalist,” King said Thursday.
Earlier this month, King was one of six semifinalists chosen to replace outgoing Superintendent John Dilworth, who announced in May that he would not seek an extension of his current contract.
Originally, the East Baton Rouge School Board used the national search consultant PROACT Search to obtain a list of 44 candidates in the fall.
“My family and I are very happy here in Rockdale County, and I am proud to be part of such a great team of educators, students and parents in this community,” King said after he was chosen as a semifinalist. “After a couple of conversations with the search firm, I felt that this may align with my long-term goals and consider it an opportunity for advancement in my career as a superintendent.”
The school board didn’t announce when it would announce the next steps of the hiring process, including more interviews and special visits, but it expected to “shortly,” according to the East Baton Rouge school system.
The East Baton Rouge system is made up of approximately 43,000 students, compared to compared to Rockdale’s 16,000 students.
King has worked for nearly seven years as superintendent of RCPS and has spent more than 25 years in education teaching math and science at the elementary, middle and high school levels.
He was named Georgia’s 2011 Superintendent of the Year by the Georgia School Boards Association and the Georgia School Superintendents Association after being a finalist for the previous three years. He serves on the advisory committee for the Vision Project for Public Education in Georgia to improve learning in the 21st century and as president for the GSSA.
He also has served as president of the Metropolitan Atlanta Regional Service Agency Governing Board and a member of the National Education Association, the Georgia Association of Educational Leaders and several other educational groups. He was on the Governor’s Education Advisory Board in 2011.
Last year, King reportedly was a candidate for superintendent positions in Cobb and DeKalb counties.
Comments
heresyafacts 3 months, 3 weeks ago
It's not a done deal, but I'm hopeful he gets the job. Looks like the perfect place, for sure: http://theadvocate.com/home/1898960-125/ebr-boards-vote-on-superintendent.html
Sundance 3 months, 3 weeks ago
if you read that article, be sure to read the comment section as well. It sounds familiar
Freedom1 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Wow, the School Board in Baton Rouge is actually discussing the candidates in front of the public, and they are disagreeing, and the public is engaged and active! The messy business of open government is being conducted in the open. Maybe we should give that a try!
AJK 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Whattya bet that'll change when Dr. King gets there?
thescot 3 months, 3 weeks ago
And you thought there was nothing you liked about Louisiana. It appears that Rockdale has been blessed by that state, and we can only hope that the school board exercises greater judgement this time around. Mr. King's words would not rankle quite so much if he and his family had actually been part of Rockdale; instead, I believe his children have been schooled in another county. Probably a good move for his children's welfare.
RFG75 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Good for him...Maybe he can take a few board members with him!
Sookie 3 months, 3 weeks ago
King was hired from the worst school system in Georgia, Clayton County. At the time, Clayton County was actually loosing accreditation. King was in the running as one of several candidates. As it happens, all the other candidates withdrew from the running and only King was left. Rockdale was 'in a corner' and felt it had to take King or there would be a variety of allegations directed at them. So, let's hope that the powers that be learned their lesson and actively recruit candidates from successful districts with successful records. And god PLEASE don't recruit members tied up in the Cheating Scandal from the failed Atlanta Public Schools! That would be almost as bad as recruiting from Clayton County.
TheEx 3 months, 3 weeks ago
RCPS should NOT promote someone (Baker, Davis, et al.) already in the county office to replace King. Let King take his buddies with him and clean house in the county office. RCPS needs to do due diligence in finding someone who will support the teachers in the classroom rather than create an intimidating and hostile environment whereby teachers are afraid to speak out about issues.
rockdalecitizen 3 months, 3 weeks ago
I totally agree!
rockdalehomeowner 3 months, 3 weeks ago
I am not a fan of No Child Left Behind, something that ALL Superintendents live and die by, but he was charged with doing a job and he apparently followed the directions remarkably. Dr. King also started implementing the Race to the Top as it was supposed to be done. This is something that most of you do not understand.
I do not agree with how education, in general, is run. I disagree with standardized testing and I hate the Common Core Standards that are being integrated but that is what we are stuck with.
Most of you do not realize how much local elections really reflect decisions about education. You need to demand changes from your state and congressional officials. You hate standardized testing then do something about it. Vote the bozos out and demand new accountability. And please, don't ever let them compare us to China.
Finally, I wonder how idiotic all of you will sound when the next superintendent comes and he/she also follows the same rules and spews the same mantra with different syllables or maybe your reaction will be different when the skin color changes...hmmmm
Dr. King, if you are reading this I live by the phrase that there are idiots everywhere you go...so I have to think that you are ready for some new idiots!
Good Luck!
ctownslimm 3 months, 3 weeks ago
I agree with some of what you say but the bottom line is that this system is soft on discipline. I would not want my children around some of the students they continue to let stay here. There are too many kids getting away with bad behavior and he has to hold the primary blame for it. Good people will not want to move here and put there kids in a system that allows bad kids to stay. There is a reason our student population is dropping. He could help our property value and forclosure percentage by being tough on discipline.
rockdalehomeowner 3 months, 3 weeks ago
I agree with your statement but I read newspapers from all over the country and Rockdale is not an exception. Societal ills are plaguing our schools. Teachers are not psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, or nurses. We as parents need to do a better job of teaching our kids about life and how to be better citizens. But I am confident that, that won't happen.
Sundance 3 months, 3 weeks ago
If they expelled children for bad behavior, they would have to find another school system and parents would have to change something.
rockdalehomeowner 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Correction if the kids were suspended or expelled and the parents were required to attend whatever school, the first two days with the child, then MAYBE behaviors would change. Don't forget kids have to attend school until they are 16. Private schools can kick kids out but they also need the money.
TheEx 3 months, 3 weeks ago
You apparently don't understand that RCPS did not have to partake in Obama's Race to the Top funds to assist in the implementation of the federal common core standards. Not all Georgia schools district did so. Dr. King wanted the money and with the money came strings attached--lots of them. This has nothing to do with the color of one's skin. Only idiots have to resort to playing the race card. It has everything to do with a superintendent that was solely focused on self-aggrendizement in order to use RCPS as a "stepping stone" to build his career "portfolio."
rockdalehomeowner 3 months, 3 weeks ago
LoL your comment, "You apparently don't understand that RCPS did not have to partake in Obama's Race to the Top funds to assist in the implementation of the federal common core standards." Well duh, yes I do understand completely that is was VOLUNTARY and it was a stupid idea and a stupid grant...why because the very fact that it is "grant". All of the changes that they (RCPS) will have to make will not be sustained by more money when the grant runs out. But thank your legislators that you voted for. I don't vote for the same people all the time because they become complacent and they begin to do what they want. And, yes, I agree that Dr. King wanted the money and apparently it wasn't enough because he asked for a TAL (tax anticipation loan) to get through the school year! So how helpful was this grant in the first place? Did you know that the state keeps $200 million for admin costs and the counties that signed on for this grant will divide the rest but the bulk of the money will go towards admin costs for this grant within the counties. It's ludicrous.
Your comment, "This has nothing to do with the color of one's skin. Only idiots have to resort to playing the race card." Yes, I would admit that I am not the "brightest bulb in the bunch" but the next superintendent will "have to" maintain the current success that has occurred on Dr. King's watch. Although, Dr. Barge has asked the Dept of Education for a waiver the law itself has not been abolished and so there will be standards that schools will have to meet and exceed. Therefore, the next superintendent will have to do the same exact things that Dr. King has done. I just think the medicine will be better ingested if the person's skin color is more similar to the majority. Hey, If I'm wrong that's ok because, "I am not the brightest bulb in the bunch."
Your comment, "It has everything to do with a superintendent that was solely focused on self-aggrendizement in order to use RCPS as a "stepping stone" to build his career "portfolio." I won't disagree with that comment but isn't that the American way?
roltheo 3 months, 3 weeks ago
@rockdalehomeowner: It is appaling that you would resort to labelling the people you disagree with as "idiots". You can make a defense of your views with facts without assuming that people who hold an opposing view must be below your intellingence level. It is apparent that others have arrived at different conclusions about the state of RCPS using the data made available publicly. I am the parent of a HS student (for full disclosure, you must know that my student is doing extremely well) who has taken the time to analyze the performamce of our high schools and I must tell you that RCPS is definitely below average in the state and the nation for the last 5 years. We are doing better at the lower grades compared to the state and I would not be surprised if people with elementary and middle school schildren would feel that RCPS is great. However, it is improtant to look forward and ask why successful students in elementary and middle schools aren't performing well in HS. I am sure there isn't a single and simple answer to the question but I do not think our admistrators are being effective in addressing the issue either. My advice to you @rockdalehomeowner is to avoid using "labels" which can only drive others to attack you personally instead of considering your contrasting views to change theirs. I would be interested to know whether you have children in RCPS and what grade levels they are in. Understand that most people react based on their individual interest. RCPS is doing better or in par with the State at the Elementary and Middle school levels but failing miserably at the HS level against both the state and the country. Our administrators must be measured against the entire portfolio, not just one aspect.
heresyafacts 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Re: "similar to the majority" -- you are aware that according to the most recent census that blacks are the majority in Rockdale? Arguments against Dr. King do not have to do with skin color; they do have to do with the bloat in terms of staff at the admin level (while teachers are being cut), with a very real problem in discipline/behavior (yes, other schools have this problem -- and many are actually doing something about i), a seeming reluctance to talk with rather than talk down to teachers, and an admin that prefers to punish teachers who point out glaring problems in the classroom and system rather than work on effective solutions to those problems.
rockdalehomeowner 3 months, 3 weeks ago
your comment, Re: "similar to the majority" -- you are aware that according to the most recent census that blacks are the majority in Rockdale?
Well according to the 2010 census the white population in Georgia is 59.7% while the black population 30.5%. The U.S. census also reveals that the white population is 72.4% in contrast with the black population which is 12.9%. So I think that I was accurate.
As far as discipline is concerned, no one wants to deal with it. They don't want these statistics affecting how the county is viewed and again this is nationwide. Not to mention, pushy parents, who threaten to make life a living heck for the school system. School systems hate litigation and taxpayers complain about the expense for the lawyers that defend the school system. So how should they handle discipline again? I don't know change the policy so that parents must attend the school for two full days after a child is suspended. Maybe then the parents will change how they raise their children.
As long as teacher's can not collectively bargain then they will never be respected in this state. This is a legislative issue. Once again, taxpayers need to step up. Email, call, go their offices, talk with them and if they don't listen then every citizen has right to fire his/her representative...USE YOUR POWER!
heresyafacts 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Collective bargaining? No. Unions do not improve education, or the products of any industry, for that matter. The policies are in place; the current admin chooses not to enforce them, just as they choose not to support the teachers. Hopefully, the school board will see fit to recruit from a county with a reputable system, next time around. Perhaps then I might be persuaded to vote for them in Nov.
TheEx 3 months, 3 weeks ago
Based on your logic, I guess we need a new President for our country, new assistant superintendents, and a new school board for RCPS as well. Not a bad idea. I heard Beverly Hall and Crawford Lewis were looking for jobs. . .
It shouldn't be that way in education, and success shouldn't be granted solely based on smoke and mirrors. Even the best illusionist is eventually exposed.
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID