THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, December 23, 1995 TAG: 9512230369
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ALETA PAYNE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Long : 126 lines
Barring any problems coming to terms on a contract, Timothy R. Jenney will be the next superintendent of the state's second-largest school system.
The South Carolina education leader hopes to join the 77,000-student Virginia Beach district ``as soon as practical,'' possibly as early as February or March, Jenney said by phone Friday.
On a 7-2 vote, the School Board agreed to offer Jenney a contract, the details of which are still to be negotiated. Board members Ulysses Van Spiva and Ferdinand V. Tolentino voted against the motion. Elsie M. Barnes and Robert W. Hall were absent from the meeting.
``He's a leader, an organizer,'' board Vice Chairman D. Linn Felt said of Jenney. ``He has a proven record in financial management. He is impressive in dealing with people.''
Felt said he didn't expect a problem with contract negotiations.
``We think we're close enough that we will get there,'' he said.
In explaining his vote against offering the contract, Spiva said, ``It is my feeling that the School Board has not taken sufficient time to look at sufficient resumes to be sure we are getting the best candidate.''
Jenney has been superintendent of Greenville County (S.C.) Schools, the largest district in that state, for 17 months. He previously served as superintendent of one of Oklahoma's largest districts, outside Tulsa.
Supporters in Greenville praise him for beginning an innovative magnet school program aimed at renewing the district's flagging inner-city schools, for building a strong alliance with the business community and for his financial skills.
There has been an outpouring of community support for Jenney in Greenville since it became known late last month that he was a candidate for the Beach job. More than 150 community members there appeared at a board meeting earlier this month urging him to stay in Greenville. Business and elected officials were among those who took out an ad in a local newspaper urging the Greenville board to give Jenney its full support.
Jenney has had to work with an increasingly contentious board, run by a majority that has been accused of micro-managing. Board members there say he has not been the problem, but has had to deal with the fallout from it.
At the Greenville board's request, Jenney flattened and consolidated the district's administrative structure, reportedly angering some longtime employees. However, he also made considerable progress in a short tenure on a list of goals he and the board agreed to when he arrived .
Jenney declined to say if he would make staffing changes here.
``I wouldn't want to talk about things I haven't discussed with the board,'' he said.
Virginia Beach board Chairwoman June T. Kernutt said Jenney was sensitive to local concerns about staff reorganization.
``I don't think in any way he plans to turn the system upside down or to make huge changes quickly,'' she said.
Jane Brooks, president of the Beach PTA Council and a member of the citizens committee that interviewed the three finalists for the superintendent's job, said she had been impressed with Jenney.
``I think he has a lot of experience and knowledge he can bring to our school district,'' Brooks said. ``He's in touch with what's going on in education nationally.''
Lynn Rademacher, a Greenville parent, was disappointed to learn that her district would be losing its leader.
``You guys are lucky, that's all I've got to say. You are getting a great person. You're very, very fortunate,'' Rademacher said.
On Friday afternoon, the board voted to offer Jenney the job more than an hour after going into a closed meeting. It came one day after the other finalists for the job, interim superintendent James L. Pughsley and Bob Bowers, superintendent of an Ohio school district, pulled their names from consideration.
Pughsley, widely favored by the district's staff, was reportedly offered the job and declined it. He would not comment on that Thursday. Kernutt said it ``was not totally accurate'' to say Pughsley had been offered the job and turned it down. She would not elaborate.
As the board deliberated, district office employees gathered in small groups, torn between beginning the Christmas holiday and waiting for a decision. Pughsley, who was not in the room for the board's deliberations, quietly left the building through a side door moments before the vote.
Jenney said he respected the loyalty many staff members feel for Pughsley, but was looking forward to developing a strong relationship with them.
``I certainly hope people will give a fair evaluation of my leadership abilities,'' he said.
Jenney will replace former Superintendent Sidney L. Faucette who left the district this summer for a job in Georgia after four years at the helm. Since Faucette's departure, massive financial problems have been discovered, including a shortfall of $12.1 million for the last fiscal year and budget problems for this year that have resulted in spending restrictions. Earlier this month, a special grand jury began an investigation of the district's finances.
The School Board hired a Charlotte-based firm in August to conduct a nationwide search for a new superintendent. Of 39 applicants, the board interviewed five people and narrowed the field to the three finalists.
For Kernutt, who has led the board through perhaps the most tumultuous period in the district's history, the decision to offer Jenney a contract is a relief.
``I do think it's a positive step,'' she said. ``I think it's a step forward, and I'm looking forward to the journey.'' MEMO: TIMOTHY R. JENNEY
Age: 43
Family status: Married with three children
Hometown: Battle Creek, Mich.
Education: B.A. in education and Ph.D. in educational administration
from Michigan State University. M.A. in educational administration from
Western Michigan University
Current position: Superintendent of Greenville County (S.C.)
Schools.
Student population: 56,000
Number of schools: 84
Operating budget (1995-96): $300 million
Years served in Greenville: In second year
Previous experience: Superintendent, Union Public Schools, Tulsa,
Okla., 1990-94; Parchment (Mich.) School District, 1985-90; Leland
(Mich.) Public Schools, 1983-85. Has worked as an elementary and junior
high school teacher, a principal, director of special education and an
assistant superintendent.
ILLUSTRATION: Color photo
Timothy R. Jenney
KEYWORDS: VIRGINIA BEACH SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS VIRGINIA BEACH SCHOOL
BOARD by CNB