BHS board of ed reignites superintendent search

By Lisa Brody

At a special meeting of the Bloomfield Hills Schools (BHS) Board of Education, the board met with and will utilize the expertise of Michigan Leadership Institute (MLI) to once again begin searching for a superintendent to lead the district.

Tim Stein is the lead contact with the institute, which will facilitate the superintendent search process with direction from the board.

MLI is a Michigan-based leadership consulting organization committed to serving K-12 school districts and public institutions throughout Michigan. Owned by the Genesee Intermediate School District, MLI works to help with the success of public education by developing, deploying and supporting outstanding executive leadership, according to its website. Key among their services are executive searches and strategic planning support.

MLI will use the candidate profile they created in spring 2023, which was developed by incorporating significant student, staff and community feedback. The superintendent position has been posted, and is open to receive candidate applications through March 18 on the MLI website.

The MLI, after weeding out the applications, and the board will conduct a series of interview of the top candidates April 16-18, with finalists to be chosen at the regular board meeting on April 23. The current plan is to conduct interviews with the finalists on May 1-2, with a new superintendent selected on May 9, to allow for a July 1 start with BHS.

Pat Watson, Bloomfield Hills Schools' previous superintendent, announced last April he would retire from the district effective July 31, 2023. On July 13, the board named Randy Liepa, PhD, interim superintendent of the district effective August 1. He was scheduled to remain interim superintendent until a new superintendent is hired or October 30, 2023, whichever came first, however a previous search for a new superintendent was not successful, with the two finalists withdrawing their applications for candidacy in August.