Myth: OSBA’s hands are tied in actively seeking candidates from Ohio school districts.
Fact: The association’s Executive Committee recently approved a new aggressive recruitment policy to better serve member districts. That policy authorizes OSBA search consultants to proactively pursue quality candidates from around the state for member school districts seeking new leadership on their management teams.

Myth: Commercial search firms, because they charge two to three times as much as OSBA, will conduct better searches.
Fact: Because OSBA is a private, nonprofit organization, our bottom line is not economics. The association’s bottom line is quality service to member districts, especially those that could not otherwise afford representation and consultation. In fact, the high-priced search firms often call OSBA for legal counsel, search advice, advertising and references on searches they are conducting within the state. Those firms know that we are an association representing 100% of all school districts in the state of Ohio and have pertinent information on school districts, potential candidates and possible reference sources. We have the internal resources and personnel to conduct quality searches at a reasonable cost.

Myth: You need a commercial firm to conduct a national search.
Fact: Every search OSBA conducts is national in scope, so we are better equipped to conduct national searches than are commercial firms. We have a wealth of nationwide resources available exclusively to educational associations, including contacts within every state school boards association, the National School Boards Association (NSBA) and scores of other professional organizations. We are the only search service in Ohio able to advertise with NSBA. All members of the OSBA search staff are members of the National Association of Superintendent Searchers, an organization dedicated solely to assisting school boards. We also have a wealth of professional and personal contacts to assist us in nationwide searches.

Myth: OSBA only conducts searches for small districts.
Fact: The strength of OSBA is that it represents all member districts throughout the state, from the very small to the very large — whether city, ESC, exempted village, JVS or local. OSBA recently completed a successful superintendent search for Columbus City and also has conducted successful superintendent and treasurer searches for Canton City, Cleveland Municipal, South-Western City, Westerville City, Worthington City and Youngstown City.

Myth: Superintendents seem to change positions every few years so spending a lot of time or money on a search isn’t really necessary.
Fact: OSBA has a longstanding record of assisting boards in bringing in quality candidates who have gone on to be successful for many years. The candidates we find for districts are those whom boards have chosen to retain over lengthy periods of time.

Myth: OSBA actively places superintendents and treasurers and serves as a placement agency.
Fact: Unlike commercial firms and other associations that place administrators, OSBA’s loyalty is to the board, which ensures that your search is not compromised by a conflict of interest. Every search is customized to the individual district, based on highly detailed criteria. OSBA represents Ohio schools, not a particular group of professionals, therefore we are able to find the highest quality candidates for leadership positions.

Myth: OSBA does not have the expertise that commercial recruiting firms do.
Fact: When you hire OSBA, you are not hiring an individual. You are hiring the full resources of an association that has conducted over 700 successful searches. OSBA’s team of experts in candidate searches, school law, board development, policy, business and more makes the association much more effective in finding quality candidates than commercial “headhunter” firms.

Myth: Local districts in Ohio must use educational service centers (ESCs) to conduct searches.
Fact: Local districts may use ESCs alone, however, numerous ESCs have partnered with OSBA on administrative searches and the association has even conducted successful searches for ESC administrators. OSBA stands ready and prepared to collaborate with your ESC to strengthen the search process.

OSBA approaches the search process from a school board’s perspective, ensuring complete board control. It also provides first-rate, professional service at an affordable price. OSBA is your association; its long-term commitment is to the successful operation of your district. When the need for new leadership arises, take advantage of the quality and expertise that OSBA Executive Searches has to offer.

If you would like to know how OSBA can help you find outstanding candidates to fill administrative vacancies or to arrange consultation services, contact Rob Delane, Kathy LaSota or Al Meloy at (614) 540-4000.