Fresno Unified's search for new superintendent faces pushback from city council members

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- As the Fresno Unified School Board searches for a new superintendent, two Fresno city council members took an unusual step Tuesday morning by weighing in.

"I am strongly encouraging they follow the lead of the school board president they elected and actually open the process up to at least statewide," Councilman Mike Karbassi said.

With the search already underway, Karbassi and Councilman Garry Bredefeld are urging the board to widen its search amid recent reports.

"Some of them have said they want to actually close off the process and only consider candidates that are internal," Karbassi said.

The two council members say it is a flawed approach. While they do not have any authority over the school board, they say the stakes are too high not to speak out publicly.

"The third largest school district ought to have a statewide and a national search," Bredefeld said.

However, the district said Fresno residents told them in a listening tour that they were okay with an internal successor. In fact, they prefer it.

In a document released by the board's consultant last month, residents said they want the next superintendent to have "strong ties to the community."

Outgoing Superintendent Bob Nelson tells Action News the next leader must understand the Valley.

"This is a very different part of California," he said. "We're not the Bay Area. We are not Los Angeles County. ... Somebody here who understands what makes the Valley function and work and understands the ag overlayment (sic) of the Valley."

With Nelson set to leave his position for a new job at Fresno State in August, the school board will now decide how to proceed with the search behind closed doors on Wednesday night.

"If the board's intent is to go outside, they will need to put a contract on the agenda," Nelson said. "And so, the community will know right away if that's the board's intention."

Efforts to reach school board members today were not successful. However, the community should know more about the search process by Wednesday night.

If Nelson's replacement is not found by August 1, Deputy Superintendent Misty Her could take over in a temporary role.