At least two Waco Independent School District trustees have raised concerns about the school board’s pick for superintendent, including her ability to lead a district as diverse as Waco and her personal and professional ties to board president Angela Tekell.
Board members Norman Manning and Stephanie Korteweg both told the Tribune-Herald they worry Susan Kincannon, the Belton ISD superintendent and lone finalist for the open Waco ISD superintendent position, does not have enough experience with a student population that looks like Waco ISD’s.
Manning also voiced concerns over Tekell’s 11-year working history with Kincannon as Belton ISD’s school board attorney and their accompanying friendship. The Tekells and the Kincannons share ownership of a house on the Brazos River with a couple of other people. The group rents out the house on Airbnb for $295 a night, according to the website listing.
Pat Atkins, Waco ISD’s former school board president, sold his quarter interest in the property to the Kincannons in September 2018, and the transaction went through in January, he said.
Manning offered an example of another applicant who was an assistant superintendent in a large urban school district of 84,000 students and had experience with an 1882 partnership, like Transformation Waco, the in-district charter partnership with Waco ISD.
“I am not questioning her credentials,” Manning said of Kincannon. “The questions in my mind are her experience in dealing with the situation we have in Waco, and I don’t see it. To fight in the sand, you have to have a certain set of skills. To fight in the mountains, you have to have a certain set of skills, but you don’t send that mountain fighter to the sand or the sand fighter to the mountains without some background experience or training.”
Meanwhile, Tekell said she disclosed her relationship with Kincannon to all board members from the moment she found out her friend was applying for the job. Kincannon told Tekell she was applying, so Tekell told each board member individually that she knew one of the applicants before they received the superintendent applications in May.
“I wanted everyone to know before they got the packet that I have longtime personal and professional relationships with her. I did not think it was my place to tell her she could not apply for the job.” Tekell said. “It’s surprising to me now we’re having the conversation at this point in the process because that’s why I called everybody in May.”
Korteweg echoed some of Manning’s uneasiness and said she shares similar concerns about the demographics of Belton ISD students compared to Waco ISD students.
The Waco ISD board named Belton ISD Superintendent Susan Kincannon as the sole finalist for superintendent in Waco ISD two weeks ago. Belton ISD photo, file
For example, about 45.5% of Belton ISD students are economically disadvantaged, compared to 77% of Waco ISD students, according to the Texas Education Agency website. Belton ISD has almost 12,000 students, almost 53% of whom are white, and Waco ISD has just under 15,000 students, almost 61% of whom are Hispanic.
Additionally, seven Waco ISD schools received an F rating from the state this year, while no Belton campuses did. One Belton campus, Southwest Elementary School, received a D.
“Her district looks very different than our district,” Korteweg said. “My hesitancy comes with her lacking a proven record within a district similar to Waco.”
Korteweg
Korteweg said she did not attend the meeting when the board named the lone finalist because she needed more time to process her choices. The board voted 5-1, without Korteweg, to name Kincannon the lone finalist on Aug. 7. Manning cast the sole dissenting vote.
When the board announced the decision at the Aug. 7 meeting, no one from the school district or board publicly brought up for discussion Tekell’s working relationship with Kincannon.
Manning, who has been on the board 10 years, said he feels like the board “rushed” the process of selecting a new superintendent after former superintendent A. Marcus Nelson resigned. Nelson resigned March 21, two weeks after his misdemeanor marijuana possession arrest in Robertson County.
“I, myself, believe I did not do my due diligence,” Manning said.
