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"April 26, 2013Both a pat on the back and a sharp elbow to the ribs for the Monterey Peninsula Unified School District this week. They get a pat-on-the-back for holding off and not moving forward with plans to hire a new school Superintendent.Just when it appeared the school board was ready to extend a contract offer to Alain Guevera, the district listened to its constituency. The board heeded the concerns voiced over a sexual harassment lawsuit involving Guevera and his school district in Lake Elsinore. Smartly, the board delayed the decision.For the people who live and work in the district, the decision is only a small comfort. Which brings us to that \u201Csharp elbow to the ribs\u201D based on all the people who are wondering, \u201CJust what the heck is this school board thinking?!\u201D The apparent lack of due diligence vetting Guevera and the allegations swirling around him, do little to inspire any confidence in the board\u2019s decision-making ability. And this near train wreck just weeks after the same school board chose \u2013 without any explanation - to pay tens of thousands of dollars to the former superintendent Marilyn Shepherd for NOT working. Board members shouldn\u2019t be surprised by the resistance they\u2019ll get for any decision they make going forward.A simple solution? Slow down.School Board president Curt Parker just resigned this past week; three board members\u2019 terms are up in November. The temporary appointment putting Leslie Codianne in-charge seems to be working for the near term.Perhaps the board should intentionally appoint a professional, outside Interim Superintendent to address fundamental concerns and possible needed change. An outside Interim would give the board more time and better prepare the way for the next permanent Superintendent. Do a more thorough search and purposely put that final decision off until next year.Guevara could still be in the running, if the legal allegations prove false. In any event, the current board would be lauded as being prudent and the reformulated board this fall would not be saddled with a superintendent cast from a flawed crucible of expedience and inadequate process. \u00A0"^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.ksbw.com/article/editorial-mpusd-slow-down/1051543>