Serving the High Plains
Serving the High Plains
SAN JON — The board for San Jon Municipal Schools during a special meeting Wednesday approved the hiring of an interim superintendent to replace outgoing superintendent Janet Gladu.
The board tapped Dane Kennon of Hanover, New Mexico, for $100 an hour, plus expenses that include boarding and gasoline.
The agreement takes effect July 1, though Kennon probably won’t assume any superintendent duties until July 5, after the Independence Day holiday.
Kennon’s teaching experience includes Silver City, Cobre, Cliff, Deming and Las Cruces. He also was a superintendent at Hatch and Cobre.
Board President Frank Gibson said Kennon was recommended by Stan Rounds, executive director of the New Mexico Superintendents Association. Kennon will rent a room in Tucumcari with his wife during his tenure as interim superintendent.
Gibson said he did not consider other possible interim superintendent candidates.
“I knew it was expensive, but we probably won’t find somebody cheaper,” he said.
Gibson said he hoped the board would hire a full-time superintendent by Aug. 1. He said several such candidates have applied, and the board will meet and interview them on July 8. The board plans a work session earlier that day to discuss the questions that will be asked and the process of selecting a finalist.
Gladu, who had led the San Jon school district for four years, submitted her resignation last month to take an undisclosed education position in northern Illinois. She previously was a superintendent at a district in western Illinois.
Her last day in San Jon was Thursday. She cited being closer to her children and grandchildren in Illinois as factors in her decision.
Her husband Tim, a Tucumcari police officer, also is taking a law enforcement position in Illinois.