Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, February 25, 1993 TAG: 9302250257
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: MELISSA DeVAUGHN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: FLOYD LENGTH: Medium
FLOYD INTERVIEWS 3 FOR SCHOOL CHIEF
The Floyd County School Board narrowed its field of 22 applicants for superintendent to three Wednesday, and brought them to the county for a tour of the schools and interviews.The finalists are Paul "Jay" Strickler, supervisor of curriculum and assessment in Franklin County; Nancy Vance, assistant superintendent of instruction and personnel in Dinwiddie County; and Terry Arbogast, assistant superintendent for administration in Fauquier County.
The School Board is looking for a successor to Superintendent Omar Ross, who is retiring June 30.
Strickler, 44, has been in Franklin County for eight years, and is supervisor of curriculum and assessment. He has 15 years' experience in education. He is married and has three sons and a 3-month-old daughter.
Strickler said he believes "all children can learn, given the opportunity and the adult supervision. I don't believe there are poor learners and good learners, but learning is a matter of time. We all have different styles of learning, and we need to tap into these styles."
Strickler has degrees from Ferrum College and from Campbell University in Buies Creek, N.C. He received his master's and doctorate from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
Strickler said the priority in any school system should be communication.
"I really feel teachers and administrators need to make decisions on what they want to teach their children, and it should be an active and collaborative process," he said.
While principal at Burnt Chimney Elementary School, he implemented a countywide program to improve instruction. After a year, the program showed "significant improvement in students' performance," said Franklin County Assistant Superintendent Florella Johnson.
Vance, 48, said she sees many similarities between Dinwiddie and Floyd counties because "both are rural school divisions and the school boards are very similar. . . . Many of our needs are the same as yours. We've questioned whether or not to renovate the existing schools or build new ones."
Another similarity, Vance said, is the compressed salary scale recently proposed by the Floyd County Education Association to give more equitable raises to teachers, especially those in their first year.
"It sounds just like Dinwiddie," Vance said. "We have had the same salary scale proposed, but no action has been taken yet. I realize this is a very important issue, and teachers need to have competitive salaries."
Vance has 27 years of experience in education. She graduated from Shepherds College in Shepherdstown, W.Va., and received a doctorate in administration supervision from University of Virginia in 1990.
She has been a teacher and assistant principal in Chesterfield County, then worked for the state Department of Education, most recently as associate director for staff development. She took her current position in July 1990. Vance is married and has no children.
Arbogast, 46, has worked for 25 years in education, beginning as an elementary school teacher and bus driver. He has coached and taught at the high school level, and now is in the central office in Fauquier County.
He is a graduate of Bridgewater College and received a master's in administration from the University of Virginia.
Arbogast says his goal as superintendent would be to make sure that "every day, every child has a successful experience at school, whether that be a pat on the back or a compliment or words of encouragement. There are a lot of ways to reinforce quality in education."
Arbogast said knowing the community is the key to being a good superintendent.
"I don't know the community dynamics yet," he said. "You need to know the community first, and understand the culture before making decisions. There is something that is good for Floyd County, and we need to find out what that is."
Fauquier County has approximately 8,600 students and 15 schools, compared to Floyd County's 1,900 students and five schools. Arbogast is married and has two grown sons.
"Our main concern for the new superintendent is that we need more clear communications through the central office," said Reba Goff, president of the Floyd County Education Association.
Goff and other association members at Check Elementary sent a letter to the School Board endorsing Arbogast.
"We would like to see an advisory council made up of teachers and educators that will work with the superintendent. And we hope [the new superintendent] will have an open door policy when dealing with the FCEA."
All three finalists agreed that clear communications between administration and teachers are important.
Vance helped start an advisory council in Dinwiddie County. Arbogast has 13 smaller committees that periodically meet with the School Board to discuss their concerns. Strickler said Franklin County has had an advisory council for eight years and he would promote one in Floyd.
The final decision on a superintendent must be made by Monday.