PINE BLUFF -- The Pine Bluff School Board has halted its search for a new superintendent, saying members were unsatisfied with the qualifications of the 15 candidates who applied.
A new search will resume in January, board member Leon Jones said.
The job became vacant April 9, when the board voted to fire Linda Watson and appoint T.C. Wallace as the interim superintendent. Wallace did not apply for the permanent position.
Watson filed a federal lawsuit against the district last month, saying she was wrongfully terminated and has suffered financial losses and a tarnished reputation as a result. State Rep. John Walker, D-Little Rock, an attorney who represents the Pine Bluff School District, offered no comment on the suit, citing the ongoing litigation.
Watson and her attorney, Richard Mays of Little Rock, also had no comments regarding the case. Pine Bluff School Board President Harold Jackson deferred all questions regarding the lawsuit to Walker.
When the board fired Watson, it did not give a reason for the firing, and members would not discuss the matter.
Watson's suit accuses the district of "breach of contract," saying the school district wrongfully terminated her without "due process." The suit further states that Watson "has lost wages, lost fringe benefits ... [and] incurred other damages in amount to be proven at trial."
A court date has not been set in the case.
Last month, the Arkansas Board of Education's academic-distress committee directed state school improvement specialists to expand their work in individual Pine Bluff schools to include district leaders in efforts to advance student achievement.
The state committee members asked for an update in two months on the 4,300-student school system, which is operating with a declining enrollment and four schools that are labeled as academically distressed or priority schools because of chronically low student achievement.
The schools are Oak Park Elementary, Belair Middle, Jack Robey Junior High and Pine Bluff High, and they are among the nine schools plus a pre-kindergarten center and an alternative school that operated in the district this past year. Academically distressed schools are those in which fewer than half of students scored at proficient levels on state math and literacy exams over three years. Priority schools are among the lowest-achieving 5 percent of schools on state tests.
Kimberly Friedman, a spokesman for the Department of Education, said Friday that the fact that the district is currently operating with an interim superintendent and the search for a new one has been temporarily suspended should not hinder the state's efforts to help improve Pine Bluff's schools.
"This is really more of a local issue," Friedman said. "This is not typically something we weigh in on. We will continue to assist the Pine Bluff district with its academic needs."
As for the search for a new district leader, the board had narrowed the list of candidates down to five but decided against hiring any of them. Jones and other board members said they wanted applicants to have at least five years of experience as a school superintendent.
The finalists were:
• Suzette Anderson, who has served as assistant superintendent at the Pine Bluff School District and is now a teacher.
• Bernard Chandler, who recently resigned as superintendent of the Tunica County, Miss., School District, a position he held for four years.
• Lynda Johnson, an administrator with the Little Rock School District. She also served as superintendent of the Gould School District from 2002-03.
• Christopher Quinn, executive director of curriculum and assistant superintendent and director of instruction for the Stafford, Va., County School District.
• Alesia D. Smith, who currently serves as the Pine Bluff School District's improvement officer.
Many in the community asked about the issue said they agreed with the board taking their time to find a new superintendent. Others are still wondering why Watson was dismissed, saying they thought she was doing a satisfactory job.
Robert Lyons, who has a daughter going into the 11th grade at Pine Bluff High School this fall, said he hopes the board will "choose wisely" before selecting a new superintendent, adding that "this is the most important job in our city."
"This person leads our teachers, our students and has a direct impact on our city," Lyons said. "I want the best person for the job, so I say they need to take all the time they need."
Larry Higgins doesn't have children but pays taxes in the Pine Bluff School District. He said he liked Watson and doesn't understand why she was let go.
"They fired the woman for no reason," Higgins said. "And if they had a reason, they sure aren't talking about it. How does that look? Suspicious. It's all suspicious to me. Now they wanted to hire a new person, but they had folks apply, and they weren't happy with them. What now? When are we going to see some stability at this school district?"
State Desk on 07/13/2015