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Judge places detainer on witness to fatal Hazleton stabbing

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Wilkes to present “Frack It Or Leave It” panel discussion of Pa.’s energy, environmental policies

It&#8217;ll take someone with broad shoulders &#8211; Atlas, maybe &#8211; to carry the weight as the next superintendent of Wilkes-Barre Area School District.She, or he, will take over as top administrator of Luzerne County&#8217;s second-largest public school district at a time of extreme financial uncertainty, public distrust and, presumably, sinking staff morale. Beyond the usual leadership roles, this sought-after boss will be expected to play the part of rift-healer, student booster and possibly magician. (How else to turn three dilapidating high school buildings into modern educational spaces and simultaneously cause a massive deficit &#8211; projected at a possible $70 million by 2020 &#8211; to disappear?)For those and other reasons, school board members, please, cast a wide net in the search for retiring Superintendent Bernard Prevuznak&#8217;s replacement.To be clear, by &#8220;wide net&#8221; we mean wider than the families of Corcoran, Elmy, Quinn and other current and former school directors. Wider than the district&#8217;s geographic boundaries. Wider than the Wyoming Valley. Even, dare we dream it, beyond Pennsylvania.If the most qualified and impressive candidate ultimately emerges from within the walls of a Wilkes-Barre Area school, so be it. But &#8211; for the sake of propriety, appearance and the district&#8217;s future performance &#8211; at least conduct a nationwide job hunt and give consideration to far-flung applicants.In mid-2012, when former Superintendent Jeff Namey stepped down, district officials supposedly commissioned the Pennsylvania School Boards Association to search the United States for his successor. The association even posted an online survey, allowing area residents to identify the characteristics they most wanted to see in a superintendent.True to their characters, however, a school board majority abruptly voted in November 2012 to cancel the search and plop Prevuznak, a longtime deputy superintendent, in the spot. (For the record, in April 2013 Prevuznak announced that, for family reasons, he would go back to being deputy until the district found a new superintendent. But by August of that year, he again was voted to fill the top post. About two months ago he informed the board of his pending retirement this summer after 35 years as a district employee.)No doubt, plenty of hardworking, devoted and law-abiding people work in this district. The temptation might be to quickly promote one from within those ranks simply because he or she &#8220;knows the system.&#8221;In Wilkes-Barre Area&#8217;s case, considering all that has gone so shamefully wrong with the system, it&#8217;s advisable to try something new. Search for someone who brings the skills but won&#8217;t be beholden to the district&#8217;s players or wedded to its processes. (After all, cronyism, nepotism and worse &#8211; outright public corruption &#8211; historically have flourished here.)For a refreshing change, look both near and far for a stellar superintendent.Isn&#8217;t this district, now more than ever, worth the extra effort?

Our Opinion: Conduct national hunt for Wilkes-Barre Area’s next school superintendent