Lockwood K-12 board approves superintendent job description, sets $130,000–$155,000 salary range and posts opening

The Lockwood K-12 School Board voted to approve a superintendent job description, set a $130,000–$155,000 salary range for the posting and authorized staff to post the vacancy on the Montana Office of Public Instruction website as the district begins a public search following the superintendent’s resignation.

Board members said the action was intended to get the search process moving while they resolve questions about whether to hire an interim and how best to conduct the search. “I’ll move to set the salary range ... from $130,000 to $155,000,” Board member Stacy said when she made the motion; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.

The board considered a wider posted range suggested by some members and reviewed a salary comparison packet provided by Kelly Kinsey. Several members warned that a very broad posting range could attract out-of-area applicants and create community concern; others said the district must remain competitive with neighboring districts. After discussion, the board agreed the $130,000–$155,000 range balanced competitiveness and fiscal caution.

Members also voted to post the job on the OPI website to open the recruitment process. A public commenter, Miss Myers, asked whether the board intended to hire someone to start July 1; the board said timing and any appointment would depend on the candidate pool and that posting the vacancy was a required transparency step.

The board discussed hiring help from the Montana School Boards Association (MTSBA) but did not authorize a contract. Board members said MTSBA’s quoted fee had been $7,000 this year (reported as $5,000 previously) and that some aspects of MTSBA’s billing and term length required clarification. Josh moved to table authorization to work with MTSBA pending clarification of fees and contract expiration; Shane seconded and the motion to table passed.

The board also approved a separate resolution authorizing Yellowstone County to conduct the district’s mail-ballot school election and related election services.

Votes at a glance
- Job description approval: motion to approve the superintendent job description (mover: Charity; second: Dave). Outcome: approved by voice vote.
- Salary-range posting: motion to set posted salary range at $130,000–$155,000 (mover: Stacy; second: Charity). Outcome: approved by voice vote.
- Post opening on OPI: motion to post superintendent job on the OPI website (mover: Josh; second: Stacy). Outcome: approved by voice vote.
- Contract with MTSBA: motion to authorize chair and clerk to work with MTSBA tabled pending fee/term clarification (mover: Josh; second: Shane). Outcome: tabled by voice vote.
- Election resolution: motion to approve Yellowstone County to conduct school elections (mover: Stacy; second: Josh). Outcome: approved by voice vote.

What’s next
The board will proceed with the posted job description and salary range and accept applications. The board asked staff to seek clarifications from MTSBA about fees and contract length before deciding whether to hire the association to assist with the search. The board also indicated it will schedule a follow-up meeting to consider interim-superintendent arrangements if needed.

Sources: meeting transcript of the Lockwood K-12 School Board meeting. All quotes and motions are drawn from speakers recorded during the meeting; where a statement was not attached to a named speaker in the transcript, the article uses an unattributed paraphrase to reflect the record.