The end of the search is near

From the sound of things, the North Brunswick Board of Education appears poised to complete its superintendent search.

The full board will meet Tuesday with two of the three finalists and already knows the third, North Brunswick Township High School Principal Dr. Robert Rimmer, well.

The board has indicated that formal action may be taken, but whether that means board members will pick the new superintendent remains to be seen.

Acting Superintendent Robert Turco, meanwhile, has agreed to stay on until the end of January instead of leaving Jan. 1 as he had planned. This suggests that the board will act very soon so that Turco can help with the transition.

This past Tuesday’s board meeting was a clear indication of how important this appointment is to the community.

In addition to residents and high school students, a number of former board members came out to criticize the board for its handling of the superintendent search process and expressing their support for Dr. Rimmer.

To be fair, the board, despite being factionalized, has worked hard to find the best possible candidate.

The problem is many residents think that candidate is already in the district and that the board is wasting its time prolonging the process.

When making its final decision, the board needs to give considerable weight to the public’s feelings.

It will also have to explain its choice and why the process was so baffling to some.

Once those steps are taken, the public must give the new superintendent, whoever it is, a warm welcome.

North Brunswick residents are all proud of their schools. With a new calendar year about to begin and the state about to start doling out funds from its multi-billion dollar construction funding pot, it’s time for the district to start focusing on its facility needs.