The Elk River Area School Board voted unanimously to select Andrew Almos as the district’s next superintendent at a special board meeting held Thursday, September 26, 2024, at the ISD 728 District Office in Elk River.
"On behalf of the ISD 728 School Board, I am proud to announce that the position of Superintendent has been offered to Andrew Almos,” said Sara Weis, ISD 728 Board Vice Chair. “Andy has shown great leadership in his role within our District and throughout his professional career. I am confident that Andy will continue to enhance and build upon the many accomplishments within our schools. We look forward to working with Andy and his team."
Almos currently serves as 728’s executive director of business services, a position he has held since the summer of 2022. Formerly the superintendent of East Central Schools, where he began in 2013, Almos also served as a K-12 Principal in Goodridge, a 7-12 Principal in Maple Lake, and a CTE teacher in Shakopee. He is active at the state and national leadership level, where he recently served on the Minnesota Association of School Administrators (MASA) Board of Directors.
“I’m deeply honored and grateful to have been chosen as the next Superintendent of ISD 728. I sincerely appreciate the trust placed in me to lead our District forward and am excited about the opportunity to serve in this new capacity,” Almos said. “Additionally, I’d like to thank Dr. Dan Bittman for his leadership over the past eight years. ISD 728 is in an outstanding position because of his vision and work in our communities. I’d also like to acknowledge the other finalists, especially my colleague and friend, Dr. Kari Rock. It was an honor to be considered alongside such a dedicated and talented individual. I’m confident our shared commitment to the well-being of students will continue to drive our work together.”
The School Board interviewed three candidates, including Almos, Rock and Thomas Ahart, the former superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools and a consultant for Ahart Consulting in Des Moines, Iowa. Rock is the assistant superintendent for secondary educational services for ISD 728.
After the interviews and their marks made during the interviews were tabulated, School Board members shared the positives of each candidate before deciding that their decision was going to come down to the two internal candidates.
The process they identified with Barb Dorn, the director of leadership development and executive searches for the Minnesota School Boards Association, called for a second round of interviews. Dorn told the Star News before the interviews started School Boards decide to make an offer after one round of interviews about 20% of the time.
School Board members considered bringing Almos and Rock back for a second round of interviews, but in the end felt they had two extremely strong candidates and were leaning toward Almos before deciding to cast a vote for him.
The School Board will be conducting contract negotiations with Almos and a contract is expected to be approved by the school board at the ISD 728 School Board’s meeting on October 28, 2024.
Almos’ pending start date as superintendent will be January 1, 2025
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