Superintendent Search

SPECIAL BUSINESS MEETINGS

 

PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Fort Lee Board of Education will hold Special Business Meetings on Monday, January 12, 2026; Wednesday, January 14, 2026, Friday, January 16, 2026; Tuesday, January 27 and Wednesday, January 28, 2026 all to be held at 4:00 p.m. in the Lewis F. Cole Intermediate School Cafetorium located at 467 Stillwell Ave., Fort Lee, NJ.  The purpose of these meetings is to review Superintendent candidates information and conduct interviews with candidates in Executive Session. No Action will be taken.

 

FOR THE BOARD OF EDUCATION:

Michael Rinderknecht

INTERIM BUSINESS ADMINISTRATOR/BOARD SECRETARY        

Update -- October 21

The online Superintendent Search input surveys closed on October 20 having garnered 214 participants.  Thanks to all who engaged in our in-person input sessions and completed the online survey.  

Please see the link below to view the informational portion of the presentation from our Family and Community Members input session. 

We look forward to providing more updates as they occur.  As always, thank you for your continuing interest and support. 

Update: October 17

As of the close of the application window on October 14, sixteen candidates have applied for the position of Superintendent: five current Superintendents, four Assistant Superintendents, four candidates in district-level Director positions, one school principal, and two candidates in other positions in public education. 

To see the full candidate pool report, please visit: https://www.khelewaconsulting.com/fort-lee-superintendent-candidate-pool-report

The Fort Lee Board of Education will convene in executive session during its meeting on the evening of November 19 to examine each of the candidates' qualifications and to determine who will be selected for first-round interviews, using the insights gained from the online survey and the in-person school stakeholder input sessions conducted in October.   Thank you to those who gave their time and offered their thoughts in the input session and surveys.  Note that the online surveys will close this Sunday, October 19, so there is still time to participate.

Please continue to check this page for updates as the FL BOE moves through the search process.  We appreciate your support during this crucial endeavor.

Input Session for Families and Community.pdf

Update -- October 3

The Fort Lee Board of Education needs the perspectives of all of our stakeholders as we begin the search for our new Superintendent of Schools.  We look forward to your participation in our live input sessions on Thursday, October 16 (see update from October 1, below)  and we are also pleased to offer completely confidential online input surveys for all of our school stakeholders.   The surveys are being administered by our consultant's firm, not the school district.  All responses are completely anonymous, and will be shared with the FLBOE to determine the suitability of the candidates for the position, and to formulate interview questions.

English-language Survey link:  https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/G3L3HVR

Korean-language Survey link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/66TYQS7

Spanish-language Survey link:   https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/G623XBM

Please take a few moments to thoughtfully participate in this brief survey, which is easy to complete on your cell phone or any other personal device.   The survey will close at 11:59pm on Monday, October 20.  

All responses are completely anonymous and will be shared with the Board to determine the suitability of the candidates for the position, and to formulate interview questions.   We appreciate your support of the FLBOE in this crucial undertaking! 

Update:  October 1  

Mark Your Calendars!  

The Fort Lee Board of Education needs the perspectives of all of our stakeholders as we begin the search for our new Superintendent.   Our Search Consultant, Kathkeen Helewa, will be visiting our District to listen to our stakeholders in a series of in-person input sessions.  Ms. Helewa will be meeting with student, teacher, administration, and volunteer leadership teams during daytime hours on October 15, and with Fort Lee families and community members on the evening of October 16.   These sessions will not be meetings of the Fort Lee Board of Education and Board members will not be present.   

We urge our families and community members to meet Ms. Helewa in the  Fort Lee High School Auditorium from 6:30pm--8pm on Thursday, October 16  to share your perspectives.  Registration is not required to attend.  Interpreters who work in various languages will be on site to aid those who need assistance.  

Additionally, anonymous online input surveys will be available for all of our school stakeholders from October 3 through October 19 (links will be published on this page).   The surveys will be available in English, Korean, and Spanish.  

Please stay tuned to this page for an announcement on October 3.  Thank you for your support of the Fort Lee BOE as the search for our next Superintendent begins! 

Thank you for visiting the Superintendent Search portion of the Fort Lee Public Schools website.   The Fort Lee Board of Education will provide regular updates here regarding our progress on the search for Fort Lee's next educational leader.    As we go forward, you will find key dates and announcements posted on this page throughout the search.  The Board is committed to transparent communication with our stakeholders, while keeping all confidential information completely confidential. 

The Board has approved Kathleen Helewa Educational Consultants, LLC to facilitate the search process.   Ms. Helewa, who will be leading the search, comes to us with distinguishing and extensive experience in conducting successful superintendent searches throughout New Jersey.   Ms. Helewa is pleased to answer any questions our stakeholders may have regarding the process.  https://www.khelewaconsulting.com/contact  

Thank you for your support of the Fort Lee Board of Education in this important undertaking.   Our Board is dedicated to hiring an inspiring and experienced educational leader for our vibrant community.  We are excited to begin partnering with you in the search for our next Superintendent of Schools!

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