GENTRY -- The Gentry School District has been accepting applications for the post of girls' basketball coach at the high school, following the resignation of Timothy Fulks from his basketball coaching duties at the school, and a special screening committee will be reviewing those applications.
In accordance with school policy, because the post is a high-visibility post within the district with much contact with the general public, a screening committee was appointed to review and interview applicants and to make a recommendation to the campus principal for hiring.
According to Randy Barrett, Gentry School District superintendent, Coach Daren Ward, who applied to be transferred into the post, waived his right under school policy for first consideration and asked to be considered along with other outside applicants in order to speed up the process and make it possible for the district to get someone in place quickly because of the basketball camps set to begin within a few weeks.
In a released May 27 email to committee members, Barrett wrote: "In visiting with Coach Daren Ward, who has requested to transfer into the Head Sr. Girls' Coach position, he offered to forego an initial meeting with the committee. He expressed this desire for the following reasons: 1. If the transfer process might not result in his immediate transfer to head coach, he felt it could be detrimental to the team's camp schedule due to the position being undecided when camps begin; 2. He wants the parents of all the players and the community to support him as coach. He feels the best way to do that will be to have an "outside search" and then prove himself to the committee as being the best candidate."
Barrett further wrote: "I agreed to waiving the initial transfer committee meeting, as I agreed with his reasoning. I also respected his desire to put what might be best for the team, as far as a time line is concerned, as his first priority."
In a released June 29 email to the committee members, Barrett wrote: "To date, 16 applicants, not including Coach (Daren) Ward, have applied for the position. I made two 'superintendent' decisions this morning. 1. I've appointed Mr. Harper as the chairperson, to serve as a non-voting member. I note the school board's policy requires the committee to 'make an informed decision and recommendation to the administrator of the location in which the employee is to be hired.' That's obviously Mr. Harper; hence, his non-voting status. 2. I've directed Mr. Harper to remove the optional student representative from the committee. That's in keeping ... with a previous school board decision not to possibly put a student in a, later-in-time, awkward position."
The email then lists the following committee members: Brae Harper, chairperson (non-voting member except as a "tie-breaker"); Larry Cozens; Justin Ledbetter; Terrie Metz; Tony Morris; Joe Still; Robin Capps; Randall Bolinger; and Mark Weathers.
The email said Harper would be contacting committee members about a Monday, June 1, meeting, and noted "this is a closed meeting to the public and to all others not serving on the committee."
Sports on 06/03/2015