Indiana law now requires school superintendents to be subject to annual review. That should have been happening all along.
This isn't always the case, however.
Crown Point Superintendent Teresa Eineman has been employed by the school district for more than six years but has yet to receive an evaluation.
Eineman's contract, now posted online as required by a new state law, includes an "Evaluation and Renewal" paragraph that says the board shall review the superintendent's contract at least annually, "at such times as shall be reasonable and agreed upon by the board and the superintendent." The evaluation is to be done in writing.
Crown Point School Board President Scott Angel said the board is proposing a mutually agreed upon evaluation.
"We have no reason to evaluate her because of how the school corporation is doing," Angel said. "There have been a couple of changes on the board but, as a group, we haven't looked into pursuing this evaluation process."
Eineman said, "My evaluation takes place each and every single day with my work for the families of Crown Point Community School Corp."
It is true that Crown Point schools are among the best in Northwest Indiana -- indeed, among the best in the state.
But any board of directors should be evaluating the performance of the chief executive hired by the board on at least an annual basis.
This lapse in Crown Point should inspire continued education reforms.
The state should next require the criteria for these evaluations be made public, perhaps as a clause or an addendum to the contract with the superintendent. Meanwhile, the actual evaluation should be confidential, a part of the superintendent’s personnel file.
The board, not the superintendent, should set these criteria.
And set them before a new superintendent is hired. Make expectations clear from the start. This is a key responsibility for any school board.
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