BSISD trustees will meet that evening to begin what they believe will be a time-intensive search for a new superintendent.

Downes, the district's chief executive since 2002, resigned in late June, citing distractions caused by an ongoing state investigation into alleged misconduct at a previous stop in his educational career. Since his resignation, Assistant Superintendent Steven Saldivar has been handling day-to-day duties at the district.

On Thursday, trustees are scheduled to name an interim superintendent to handle matters until a permanent replacement is named. Also, the school board will hire a “search firm” to secure and screen applications for the position.

Attorneys with the Underwood Law Firm, which represents the district, have been busy compiling a list of prospective interim superintendents, Board President Irene Galan said while declining to name any candidates. The district's lawyers also will recommend a search firm, she added.

Galan said no timetable has been set for naming a permanent replacement, but added the process likely won't be a quick one.

“It's really all up to what the search firm finds for us,” she said. “Right now, we're very unsure as to the how long it will take ... but I'm sure it will take at least two months.”

Coahoma ISD is currently winding down the search for a new superintendent, a process that has taken about three months.

Once a search firm is hired, it will then post the job opening through various sources and firm representatives will talk with trustees and other district staff to determine exactly what kind of candidate BSISD wants for the position.

After that, it will be a matter of accepting and screening applications, a process that will take several weeks at least, Galan said.

From the pool of available candidates, Galan estimated that the trustees will interview between three and five finalists before naming a new chief executive.

This will be the fourth time in the past 20 years that the school district will be in the market for a new superintendent. Of the last four chief executives, only Downes came from outside BSISD.

As for what she wants in a new superintendent, Galan was direct.

“One of the biggest things is that I want a superintendent who cares about the community in general and the students in particular,” she said. “And he or she must have a very, very, very open door policy. Open lines of communication are very important to me.”

The school board meeting will be at 5:15 p.m. Thursday in the high school board room.

Contact Staff Writer Steve Reagan at 263-7331 ext. 234 or by e-mail at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it