Update: Cedar Falls is Chance to Learn and Listen, Says Superintendent Candidate Van Soelen

Updated 10:57 p.m.:

Cedar Falls superintendent candidate Thomas Van Soelen isn't looking for just any job.

"At one point, I counted up all the superintendent openings in the United States and there were 125," he said. "I didn't apply for all of those. I applied for this one."

He said wants a job where he can continue learning and thinking and building relationships. He sees that in Cedar Falls, he told community members at a public reception Tuesday.

"I'm looking for a place that I can do intellectual work, that I can really be learning and developing with a community," he said.

The current associate superintendent of Decatur City Schools in Decatur, Ga., Van Soelen said he also seeks a job where he can build relationships - such as between the school district and the University of Northern Iowa and with other community groups and businesses - and where he can engage his skills in change management. Cedar Falls' current high school project is a chance for both, he said.

The school board is in the process of deciding whether to build a new high school or renovate the existing structure.

Van Soelen has some experience with such projects. The Decatur City school board approved a plan just last week to renovate their high school at a cost of $58 million. Like Cedar Falls, Decatur residents will need to approve the bond in a public vote, which will take place in November, according to Decatur Patch.

Van Soelen said he sees the 120 days set aside for public meetings and input on the project in Cedar Falls as a chance to gain feedback not just on the high school but on how residents feel about a range of issues. He said that feedback could then help the district develop a strategic plan for the next five to ten years.

Gathering feedback and working collaboratively are important for any leader, he said. He said as a new superintendent he would spend the first 90-100 days learning from the community and listening as much as he could, and he even started that process as soon as he checked into his hotel Monday night.

"I walked the community for about two hours, and any person that I felt like might talk to me I just stopped," he said.

Beyond chances for the kind of work he said he enjoys, a move to Cedar Falls would also bring Van Soelen closer to his family in Iowa and his wife's family in Minnesota. He graduated from Unity Christian High School in Orange City before attending Dordt College in Sioux Center. He also studied at Florida Atlantic University and got a doctorate in elementary education from the University of Georgia.

Van Soelen is the second of four candidates interviewing for the superintendent job this week. The first candidate, Charles City and Riceville Superintendent . The other two candidates will interview and meet with the public Wednesday and Thursday.

The candidates are:

• Dr. Andy Pattee, Superintendent, Charles City Community School District, Charles City, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Monday)
  
• Dr. Thomas Van Soelen, Associate Superintendent, City Schools of Decatur, Decatur, Georgia (Reception 4:45 p.m. Tuesday)
  
• Dr. Douglas G. Van Zyl, Superintendent, Fort Dodge Community School District, Fort Dodge, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Wednesday)
  
• Dr. Rich Powers, High School Principal, Cedar Falls Community School District, Cedar Falls, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Thursday)

Original story:

Thomas Van Soelen, the second of four finalists for the position of Cedar Falls superintendent, will meet with the public at a reception this afternoon.

The reception is from 4:45 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. at the James L. Robinson Administration Center, 1002 West First St., in conference room B. Van Soelen will also be interviewed by the Cedar Falls School Board today.

The Cedar Falls School District is looking for a new superintendent after the board decided not to renew first-year superintendent Mike Wells' contract.

Van Soelen is currently associate superintendent of City Schools of Decatur, Ga. According to his LinkedIn account, he started his job in Decatur in 2005 and before that was Director of Teaching and Learning in Clarke County School District in Athens, Ga. He graduated from Unity Christian High School in Orange City before attending Dordt College in Sioux Center. He also studied at Florida Atlantic University and got a doctorate in elementary education from the University of Georgia.

The first candidate, Charles City and Riceville Superintendent . The other two candidates will interview and meet with the public Wednesday and Thursday.

The candidates are:

• Dr. Andy Pattee, Superintendent, Charles City Community School District, Charles City, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Monday)
  
• Dr. Thomas Van Soelen, Associate Superintendent, City Schools of Decatur, Decatur, Georgia (Reception 4:45 p.m. Tuesday)
  
• Dr. Douglas G. Van Zyl, Superintendent, Fort Dodge Community School District, Fort Dodge, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Wednesday)
  
• Dr. Rich Powers, High School Principal, Cedar Falls Community School District, Cedar Falls, Iowa (Reception 4:45 p.m. Thursday)
  

The board worked with search firm McPherson & Jacobson, whose consultants reviewed and screened candidates. On Thursday, consultants presented the applicants to the board of education and provided them detailed background information on each applicant. 

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