Students Deserve the Best Leader : A full search for a successor to LAUSD Supt. Thompson is needed

There is a move by several members of the Los Angeles school board to vote today on a replacement for Supt. Sid Thompson, who announced less than a week ago that he plans to retire next year. It’s far too early to make such a decision. The Los Angeles Unified School District needs the best possible candidate. Its nearly 650,000 students and their parents deserve a measured, thoughtful search for Thompson’s successor.

The top job is not a prize to be handed out without a national search. There are qualified candidates within the district now, of course, but it’s certainly nobody’s “turn.” Los Angeles has a history of mistreating outsiders recruited for top public jobs. But this job requires an experienced administrator, from here or elsewhere, with proven talent for boosting achievement levels, grappling with bilingual education, managing overcrowding and dealing with powerful unions and budget crises. Precisely, someone who can hold out hope for Los Angeles’ children.

The next schools chief will be the fifth in a decade. Prior to 1981, when the admirable Harry Handler took charge, superintendents tended to spend at least 10 years in the job. A return to more stable tenures is in order.

Sid Thompson graciously announced his retirement early to give the board adequate time to find the best-qualified person to succeed him. Buying out his contract now and hiring an instant replacement would be a waste of public dollars and an abuse of the public trust.