Vandalia-Butler sets public meeting for superintendent candidates

The Vandalia-Butler City Schools is giving the community a chance to meet three individuals who want to become the district’s next superintendent.

The school board will hold a “Meet the Candidate” night from 6:30 -9 p.m. on Tuesday, April 9, in the Butler High School Lecture Room. The event will provide a chance to meet second-round candidates to replace Superintendent Christy Donnelly, who announced she will retire June 30 after about 13 years leading the district.

The candidates are:

  • Brad Neavin, superintendent of Eaton Community Schools
  • Robert Neubauer, human resources/curriculum specialist for Vandalia-Butler City Schools
  • Tony Orr, superintendent for Northwestern Local Schools in Clark County

Each candidate will have an opportunity to introduce himself, share his vision for the district and respond to questions.

A panel of staff, students and community members also will meet with the candidates that week, and the school board will meet with each candidate in executive session, spokeswoman Bethany Reiff said in a news release.

The board received 24 applications in February and interviewed eight candidates earlier this month. Feedback gathered from four staff and community focus groups was used to evaluate the candidates, Reiff said. Although the board has narrowed the group of candidates to three, it has not ruled out the possibility that additional candidates could be interviewed before a final decision is made, she said.

Donnelly, who told the school board impending changes to the retirement system prompted her decision, has spent most of her career with the district, where she started as a Vandalia Elementary teacher in 1977. She has been superintendent since 2000.

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