Bette Hyde

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BREMERTON

Just-retired Bremerton School District Superintendent Bette Hyde has agreed to return for a year until a permanent superintendent for the district can be found.

Board members could sign her contract on Thursday night.

In a surprise announcement Tuesday evening, school board members said they'd offered Hyde the position of interim superintendent.

They did not offer it to two contenders who rose to the top of a district consultant's search, which didn't include Hyde. Those were former Bainbridge Island School District Superintendent Stephen Rowley and former Hoquiam School District Superintendent Tim McCarthy.

Hyde's contract will be at about the same pay rate as she earned this past school year before retiring July 1, but she will only be paid for about 187 days, according to board President Cynthia Galloway and board member DeWayne Boyd. Some board members and others expected that Hyde also could receive some or all of her pension as well.

Hyde did not return phone messages from the Kitsap Sun on Tuesday or Wednesday to find out more specifics on the proposed contract and pension. She earned about $130,000 last year.

While there was no public input in the decision, there were hints that the board might add recent superintendent retirees like her to their consideration.

In a May 22 board meeting, the consultant, Gay Selby, suggested the board might look for a former superintendent in a district similar to the Bremerton School District. And the Kitsap Sun, on July 9, quoted Boyd saying that the board would continue to accept applications for the interim position even after Rowley and McCarthy had risen to the top of the search.

In the end, it came down to finding someone fast who board members felt met their criteria, and Rowley and McCarthy weren't it.

The school district today is "data-driven," said board member Louis Mitchell, meaning in part that students' grades are based on their work and there is no extra credit. The two candidates weren't as familiar with the concept as board members desired, he said.

Boyd said Hyde's name came up only last week, well after the Rowley and McCarthy interviews, when board members asked Selby to provide them with a list of superintendents who had retired this year. There were four, most of them local. Board members also directed Selby to start with Hyde, Boyd said.

Selby contacted Hyde, who expressed interest. She had become eligible for the position after complying with a state law that calls for about 45 days to pass from a retirement date, board members said.

Then on Tuesday, Hyde met with board members in a session that was closed to the public. The announcement of the offer was made minutes later, without Hyde present.

In an effort to find out more about the selection process that bypassed public input, the Kitsap Sun has filed a public documents request for e-mails that might have been shared between school board members on the process leading to the selection of Hyde.

Meanwhile, Boyd and Mitchell admitted that they had reservations about the process and lack of public input. A public panel did have the opportunity to meet with Rowley and McCarthy.

"Actually, we would have preferred to go with more public input. Had Hyde not been available, "then we would have gone through and let people see it. It seemed like a no-brainer," Boyd said.

"I did have reservations in this process, yes," Mitchell said.

Mitchell said he did his own due diligence, researching new state laws on the rehiring of retirees, and checking with the district's attorney.

"I will tell you that I championed contacting legal counsel, and after much deliberation, we went ahead and contacted legal counsel, and we were assured we followed appropriate procedures," Mitchell said.

Marilee Scarbrough, director of policy and legal services for the Washington State School Directors Association, said it's not unusual for districts to hire retired persons, and they have a lot of leeway.

"School board members have a great deal of discretion when they are hiring a superintendent," she said.

School board members aren't unhappy that the Selby search yielded little. She's been paid $3,381 to date.

Galloway said Selby was clear on what the district wanted in a successful candidate, and advertised it widely. But no one can control who applies.

"It wasn't her intention; it was whoever applied," Galloway said.