Dr. Briggs, superintendent finalist, lays out 90-day entry plan as Wayzata board presses on referendum, special education

Dr. Briggs, chief operations officer for the Des Moines Public School District and a finalist for Wayzata's superintendent post, presented a 15-minute entry plan to the Wayzata Public Schools Board of Education and answered a series of questions on transition priorities, special education and the district's upcoming levy referendum.

Briggs outlined a three-phase approach: the first 30 days for "listening and learning" through stakeholder interviews and school visits; the next 30 days for assessment and deeper engagement with data; and the third 30 days to "plan and act," culminating in a formal 90-day entry plan to present to the board. He said his work will be grounded in the district's mission and seven strategic directions and described guiding principles of achievement, collaboration, equity, integrity and respect. "I commit to you that I will listen before acting," Briggs said during his closing remarks.

Why it matters: The board is interviewing finalists while preparing for an April capital projects and technology levy referendum; the candidate's approach to the bond's implementation timeline and to rising special-education needs was a central concern for several board members.

Board members asked about leading through change in a district that has had a long-serving superintendent. "Wayzata Public Schools as a community has not had to experience a change in superintendent position in decades," Heidi Kader, the board treasurer, said, asking how Briggs would guide the district through that transition. Briggs responded that people often "fear loss" rather than change, and emphasized frequent communication, listening before acting, and aligning actions to the district's strategic directions.

The board pressed on special education and staffing. A newer board member asked about experience providing services to students whose special-education needs are rising in number and complexity. Briggs, who said he had been labeled with a disability as a child, described his commitment to inclusive systems, data-driven interventions and recruiting and retaining special-education staff.

Several board members also probed the candidate's experience with construction and referenda. Briggs described prior roles that involved referenda and capital projects and said his current position oversees facilities work; he said designs and planning often begin before a bond vote and emphasized the need to keep bond implementation "on target" if voters approve it in April.

On academic outcomes, Briggs emphasized multi-tiered systems of support, use of universal screeners given several times per year, professional learning communities for staff to unpack data, and regular monitoring via one-on-one meetings with directors and periodic updates to the board.

Board governance and nonpartisanship were raised repeatedly. When Briggs asked how the board approaches politically sensitive decisions, the chair and other members stressed a commitment to nonpartisanship and said decisions should be driven by student outcomes rather than political ideology.

What was said about numbers and past referenda: Briggs referenced prior referendum efforts during his career, including a large-dollar figure he described while recounting past experience; the specific multi-billion-dollar figure he recited in the interview is reported here as the amount he stated during the session but has not been independently verified from the record provided.

Next steps: The chair told Briggs that MSBA (Minnesota School Boards Association) will relay the board's deliberation later the same day. No formal vote was recorded in the session transcript provided.

Speakers quoted and paraphrased in this article are drawn from the interview transcript and are attributed to the board members and Dr. Briggs as identified there. The board first introduced itself at the start of the meeting; Barb Dawn from MSBA served as the timekeeper for the interview.