HOULTON, Maine — RSU 29 has officially begun the search for its next superintendent.
The district is in the process of searching for a new administrative leader for the first time in six years following the surprise resignation of Superintendent Ellen Halliday back in March.
Board chairman Fred Grant confirmed Tuesday morning that the district has received eight applications for the position of superintendent. Of those eight, Grant said the district would likely interview three or four of the top candidates.
The application process closed May 3.
“We had our first meeting for the selection process for our superintendent search with MSMA [Maine School Management Association],” Grant said. “That process went well. We had initial training with Steve Bailey, the executive director of MSMA.”
The board will meet Wednesday, May 5, at 5 p.m. via the online conferencing platform Zoom, to further discuss its options with MSMA officials.
Halliday, who started her career as an educator in Presque Isle and worked in various roles within the SAD 1 school system for 26 years before taking her first superintendent position in Wells-Ogunquit in southern Maine, has been with the RSU 29 school district since 2015.
While with RSU 29, Halliday collaborated with neighboring districts SAD 70 and RSU 50 to create a regional service center, which included grant funds for a regional bus garage, regional professional development, and a regional alternative education program.
Halliday also received the Maine School Superintendent Association MSMA Outstanding Educational Leadership award in 2019. She is the current president-elect of the Maine School Superintendents Association and has served on numerous boards and professional committees.
Halliday and her husband, Clay, are leaving the greater Houlton area to be closer to family. The couple recently welcomed their first grandchild. She accepted a superintendent’s position with the Fremont School District in Fremont, New Hampshire.
