North Forest ISD chooses former superintendent again

North Forest ISD chooses Superintendent finalist Dr. James Simpson

By Gilbert Hoffman
North Forest ISD trustees, after months of searching for a new superintendent to replace the one they fired last March, came up with a surprising answer last Wednesday night – they chose the fired school head, James Simpson as the lone finalist by a 4-3 vote. This spread, similar to the vote that fired Simson, is an indication of the inherent strife present between the board members. Yet the vote in one way indicates the desire of the board for reconcilliation, and a new course for the district.
After a state mandated 21 day waiting period, and another vote, Dr. Simpson will be able to return to his office and continue the work of fixing the problems with this troubled school district.
Simpson was one of three finalists considered by the board, as a result of search work done by TASB. The others were not named, but the board indicated that the presentation for Simpson had been very positive.
North Forest is now operating under the guidance of two state TEA conservators, one for financial matters and one for academic problems.

During the meeting, controversy continued, as T. Marie McCall explained that she had changed her position, and voted for Simpson this time, because she thought this was best for the children of the disrict, and that Simpson would land on his feet with momentum for improvement.
In contrast, when Trustee Pastor Charles Taylor Sr. voted, it was a resounding “Hell NO” that later elicited an apology for the profanity from Trustee Williams. Taylor said in his remarks that he thought Simpson had the “worst record” of any of the candidates, and should answer for previous NF problems, including the finances and the control of the administration.
Several board members indicated that they had voted for Simpson with the hopes that the board’s involvement in affairs would end, and he could run the administration without micromanagment from the board.
Provost and Ross indicated that the vote was in the best interests of the students, and looked forward to the board and administration working more as a team. Provost indicated that previous problems were not created by Simpson, but before he took over and that he had been working to correct them.
This included hiring bonuses for teachers, a new curriculum, and working with local community colleges on credit courses for high school students.