SOCORRO — At a special meeting of the Socorro Consolidated School District on Monday, Randall K. Earwood was approved as the new superintendent of Socorro Consolidated Schools. He will take the reins on July 1, 2012, with a one-year contract, ending June 30, 2013.
No details of his contract where available at meeting’s end.
In a 4-1 vote, board members James Chavez, Dawn Weaver, Kim Gonzalez and Pauline Jaramillo voted to approve his nomination. School Board Chairwoman Ann Shiells cast the only “no” vote.
“I want to be clear that this is not anything negative toward to you, Mr. Earwood,” said Shiells, directing her comments to Earwood, who was sitting in the audience with his wife. “My vote is in support of Dr. Perry.”
Dr. Vannetta Perry, who has served as interim superintendent since Dr. Cheryl Wilson’s resignation went into effect at the end of last year, was also a finalist for the job. Other finalists were Socorro County native Tom Burris, currently superintendent of schools in Truth or Consequences; Susan Wilkinson Davis, an assistant superintendent and principal in the Jemez Valley Public School District; and Lillian Marie Torrez, another Socorro County native who is now dean of students and assistant principal at St. Pius X High School in Albuquerque.
Shiells went on to congratulate Earwood and express thanks to all the participants in the hiring process.
“I wish you the very best in moving ahead. This is a great town, full of hard-working, decent people. You won’t find a better community,” Shiells said. “I need to also thank my board and the administrative staff. They put in a tremendous amount of hours, food service for feeding us many times as we worked on this, and our community residents for going above and beyond in this process.”
Earwood has a master’s degree in education and a bachelor of science degree in elementary education. He is currently superintendent of schools at Mesa Vista Consolidated Schools in El Rito. He is former director of employee relations for Las Cruces Public Schools and was assistant superintendent for technology for Los Lunas Schools. He was also principal and athletic director in Carrizozo and spent five years as an elementary school teacher in Roswell.
In addition to his experience in the public schools, Earwood is a former Church of Christ minister.
“I am looking forward to working with all parties to ensure that the children here have the best possible education and that all our schools meet their needs,” Earwood said.
