DOUGLAS COUNTY, Colo. — Douglas County School District (DCSD) announced on Wednesday a search for its next superintendent is officially underway.
DCSD Board of Education said it selected firm Frederick Andrews, which will focus on a more regional search in the hopes of finding an internal or local candidate with strong ties to the DCSD community.
>Video above from Sept. 2020: Former DougCo superintendent was placed on leave for "allegations of improper conduct."
Input will be collected from DCSD staff, parents, students, community members, business owners and elected officials through a series of surveys.
Respondents are asked to complete the appropriate survey by Tuesday, Feb. 23.
DCSD said the community will have an opportunity to meet the finalists selected during forums that will be held in early April.
Former Superintendent Dr. Thomas Tucker resigned his post at a special Board of Education meeting on Sep. 8. The board unanimously voted to accept Tucker's resignation.
Tucker requested the meeting, and his resignation was effective on Sept. 30.
Tucker was hired in April 2018 and began his duties on July 1 of that same year, according to his contract, which ran through June 2023.
Prior to his resignation, Tucker had been placed on paid administrative leave amid an investigation of “allegations of improper conduct.”
That’s according to a Sept. 3 letter from DCSD Board of Education President David Ray that was first obtained by 9NEWS.
“The Board will be hiring an outside investigator to conduct a fair and impartial independent investigation into this matter, and you are expected to cooperate with the investigator,” the letter reads.
The letter does not detail the alleged improper conduct, but does say the leave “is not disciplinary in nature but is for the purpose of protecting your rights as well as the interests of the District during the investigative period.”
Tucker resigned during the board meeting he requested five days after the letter was sent.
DCSD announced on Oct. 8 that Corey Wise had been selected to become the interim superintendent for the district.
Wise has served DCSD for more than 24 years, the release said. He has worked as a teacher and an assistant principal, and was the founding principal of Legend High School. He was DCSD's executive director of schools for the East Highlands Ranch Region and Alternative Education at the time of his hiring, according to the district.
The first sole finalist for the position of interim superintendent, Dr. Damon Brown, withdrew his name from consideration a day after the board announced he had been selected.
The deputy superintendent of organizational systems and community engagement for Mapleton Public Schools notified the board he didn't want the job after the announcement, according to a release.
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