The GCISD School Board has selected three finalists for the superintendent’s job and will hold a second interview with them and their spouses March 6, 7 and 8. Tentative plans call for three school board members to make a two-day visit to the final choice’s place of residence March 13 –14. The board plans to hire a new superintendent March 20, and he will presumably start work June 1.
The final three candidates:
Tommy Jay Hancock has been the superintendent at Westbrook ISD since 1997. Prior to that, he was the K - 12 principal at Ira, the secondary school principal at Aspermont, and the junior high principal at Friona. His bachelor’s degree is from Texas Tech with a teaching field in agricultural education. He did graduate work at West Texas A & M and Sul Ross, his Master’s in agricultural education and mid-management and his superintendent’s certificate is from Sul Ross.
Stephen Ray Long has been the superintendent at Rule ISD since 1995, and before that, he was Rule’s principal. His bachelor’s degree is from Angelo State University, his Master’s, in education and mid-management, is from Abilene Christian University, and his superintendent’s certificate is from Sul Ross. He has teaching fields in science and physical education and has been a science teacher and coach at both Roby and Water Valley.
Joe P. Spaulding, Jr. has been with the Division of Accountability Evaluation at the Texas Education Agency in Austin since 1988. He has a bachelor’s degree in social science and English from Harding University in Searcy, Ark., and has done graduate work at both the University of Houston and the University of Texas at Austin. His Master’s is in administrative education from the University of Houston. Prior to 1988, he was superintendent of schools at Dell City ISD, assistant to the superintendent at Eanes ISD (Westlake High School), middle school principal at Eanes ISD, and an educational consultant for Exxon Corp. (His father was once a Church of Christ minister at Garden City.)
The Texas Association of School Boards search team employed by GCISD received seventeen applications for the superintendent’s job, and the team sifted those down to eight. A TASB representative presented the resumes of those to the GCISD school board Feb. 10, and the board chose six for interviews. The board then interviewed those six candidates for about two hours each on Feb. 19, 20 and 21, and selected the three finalists from that group.