By Crystal McGough, Associate Editor
TRUSSVILLE – The Trussville Board of Education started off its week of superintendent interviews Monday night, Feb. 27, interviewing two of the five finalist candidates, Dr. John Barge and Dr. Kevin Maddox.
Dr. John Barge (Photo by Crystal McGough)
The first to be interviewed was Dr. Barge, who is currently self-employed as an education consultant in Kingston, Georgia, but has previous experience as the superintendent of McIntosh County Schools (2015-2019) and State School Superintendent for the Georgia Department of Education (2011-2015).
Barge’s interview began at 5 p.m., with him addressing some of the general questions that went out to all of the candidates in advance before continuing into a time of Q&A with the board members.
One of the first questions was concerning Barge’s immediate plans for the job within the first one, three and six months, to which Barge said that he planned to “hit the ground running.”
“As quickly as I can, (I plan to) meet with you all, each principal, the staffs at each school,” Barge said. “Get to know them and let them get to know me, making sure we don’t miss a beat.”
Barge added that he likes to have a wide range of advisor committees, including committees of parents, teachers and students, as well as other school staff including bus drivers, custodians and nutrition workers.
“I make it a point to make sure all groups are represented in my advisor committees,” he said.
In his last superintendent position, Barge said he entered into a situation where there had been “serious ethical issues and loss of trust with the community.”
“So, the advisor committees are very important,” he said. “It allows members of the community to have an input.”
Furthermore, Barge said that he was not only open to, but wants his principals and administrators to review him.
In answer to a question from Board Vice President Kim DeShazo regarding his leadership style, Barge listed four things he believes are necessary for a superintendent. According to Barge, a superintendent must be visible, accessible, approachable and active in the community.
“If you’re going to have trust … from the community, they have to see their superintendent,” he said. “I like to be involved.”
Barge said he plans to attend ball games and other extracurricular activities, as well as have lunch with teachers.
Additionally, he said he has an open-door policy and wants easily accessible lines of communication, via email, phone, text, and even an app, to be able to immediately communicate with parents.
As for educational standards, Barge said high expectations are critical.
“I expect all students to learn (and) that happens when we have high expectations,” he said. “High achievement is not going to look the same for every student (because) students have different passions.
“As superintendent, my job is to make sure the environment is conducive to those high expectations. To make sure the environment is conducive to learning.”
When asked why he is interested in the Trussville position, since he comes from Georgia, Barge replied, “I’m sure you guys know how unique you are. In Georgia, every school board is elected. You (TCS) have an appointed school board and superintendent. With an elected school board, it’s hard to get politics out.”
“I probably have never been more excited about an interview for a position in my life,” Barge added. “I think I have a lot to offer Trussville as you move forward.”
Dr. Kevin Maddox (Photo by Crystal McGough)
The next interview took place at 7 p.m. with Dr. Kevin Maddox, who is currently Assistant Superintendent at the Homewood City Board of Education, a position he has held since 2012.
Maddox referred to the superintendent position as a “critical leadership position,” and prior to the interview, he provided the board members with his 100-day entry plan.
The plan, he said, has four overarching goals: transition seamlessly, listen intently, organize strategically and communicate transparently.
“Change is extremely difficult,” Maddox said. “… The last thing (we need) is for someone to come in and begin making changes.”
Maddox said that part of his plan for a seamless transition is to work closely with Interim Superintendent Dr. Frank Costanzo.
As for the second goal – listen intently – Maddox said he plans to initiate “Listen and Learn” sessions where community members will be invited to share their voice.
“Listening intently means you have to go where the people are,” he said. “We’re going to elicit feedback from our stockholders. I think that is critical.”
Additionally, Maddox said he plans to hold “small group” conversation meetings with outgoing seniors to get their perspectives and recommendations.
Maddox said that he is a big fan of climate surveys, surveys that provide in-depth profiles of a school’s strengths and weaknesses.
“If you want to know everything you need to know to be the best leader, you have to ask the right people and the right questions,” he said. Maddox added that the surveys would be anonymous and administered by a third party, in order to get the most honest results. “It will be the best source of feedback that a superintendent could ever get.”
The results of these surveys would then be used to meet the third goal in Maddox’s plan: organize strategically for the next school year.
As for his fourth goal, to communicate transparently, Maddox said he wants to “communicate so well, so often, and so efficiently that people begin to ask, ‘Why?’”
“Over-communicate,” he said. “Things are going to happen, but when they do you have to own it, deal with it and communicate about it. People have to trust that you’re going to be forthright with them and honest. That’s the only way I’ve ever operated.”
Maddox said that it’s in his personality to be highly engaged with the schools in his district, being in at least one school, if not multiple, every day.
Additionally, he said he loves working for Homewood Schools and would not consider leaving for just any school district, but that he fell in love with the Trussville community when his children played softball there in 2016.
“This is one of the top school districts in Alabama,” Maddox said. “There are lots of other opportunities, but I’ve always had my eye on this place since 2016 when we started coming here. I felt like this is the perfect match.
“I’m not looking for a title,” he added later in the interview. “I’m not looking for greener grass. I would love to be a part of something really special, and that’s what I see for this school district down the road.”
The next interviews will take place Tuesday, Feb. 28, beginning at 5:30 p.m, with Dr. Bart Reeves and Mr. Tony Willis. All interviews will be held at the TCS Central Office in the Board Room.
