Sign this petition to send a message to the Hartselle City Schools Board of Education: 

Stop the Superintendent hire. Ask necessary questions, include community input, and do not rush the process.  

Hartselle City Schools Board of Education has recently recommended hiring a new Superintendent.  If you have not heard about it, it is likely because the interview process was completed with no public input or comment. The chosen candidate is from a school system in another county, completed only one round of interview questions, and was selected instead of other well-qualified candidates with established roots in our community.  

Since 2020, Hartselle has seen an influx of families from other areas of the state and country.  Due to COVID restrictions and a perceived ideological shift in school systems across the country, many families sought a more traditional learning environment for their children. Our administrators and educators did amazing work during an unprecedented time.  Their efforts permitted an early pivot back to in-person learning while staying focused on traditional education.  This allowed our students to reap the benefits of being in a structured classroom with their peers while others around the country are still denied that opportunity.  

As stakeholders, we hope and pray there is nothing on the horizon comparable to COVID or the societal events of 2020.  However, there should be no question where our new superintendent stands on the following issues:

• In-person instruction vs. remote learning
• Student mask mandates
• The role and inclusion of ideological curricula in our school system

The undersigned parents, citizens, and stakeholders request that the Hartselle City Schools Board of Education immediately halt contract negotiations and re-interview qualified candidates to address the above topics.  

Our community feels strongly about these issues.  A successful applicant should satisfactorily address them, and that perspective should be publicized with time sufficient to allow for public comment before a contract is offered.  A rushed process encourages speculation, damages public faith, as well as the vital relationship between a superintendent and the Hartselle community.