Provides ten suggestions to help in choosing and using an outside evaluator. (IRT)

The most important factor in the hiring process is that a large committee conducts the interview. Interviews and group discussions that follow must be structured and supervised carefully so that each person's evaluations are taken into account. (Author)

Answers questions about how to choose, use, and evaluate a professional negotiator. (IRT)

Administrator guidelines for bus transportation; includes a table of school bus accidents in each State. (LR)

Explains what an external audit is, what an external auditor can do, and how to select one to perform an audit on your district. (IRT)

For more than a decade, a principal of a large innercity elementary school in New Haven, Connecticut, convened a committee of parents and school personnel to interview candidates for positions as teachers and aides. About 50 persons were hired using this process, and all the teachers were successful. The interviewing process has since become…

The costliest attitude to assume is the one that says the architect to hire is the man who promises to do the cheapest job. (Author)

In selecting an architect for new construction or renovations, building committee members are advised to adhere to eight basic disciplines that apply to architects as well as to clients. (Author/WM)

Explains how to select a superintendent. Provides a step-by-step examination of the search process, including some seemingly safe steps that, if skipped, can reap the penalties attached to sins of omission. (Author/IRT)

Describes several cases involving the sexual abuse of students by teachers and other staff members; suggests ways school districts can protect their students from abusive staff members, especially pedophiles. (PKP)

Suggests that school boards use lawyers both as general counsel for day-to-day advice and as special attorneys to handle litigation. Presents guidelines on attorney hiring and discusses attorney characteristics, meeting attendance, law firm size, fee schedules, communications with the board, and courtroom experience. (RW)

Describes why school-board employment decisions, especially involving the hiring of a new superintendent, did not work out. Identifies and discusses several common mistakes boards make during the hiring process. For example, the board asked too many "tell me why you would do" and not enough "tell us what you did" questions. (PKP)

Public educators must exercise reasonable care in screening prospective employees. The best way to avoid harm to students (and negligent lawsuits) is to check references carefully to determine a candidate's fitness. This means verifying basic data and scrutinizing past job performance by contacting references familiar with the candidate's work…