District looks to refine its exit interview process

The Cedar Grove-Belgium School District wants to continue to do exit interviews, only using an in-house process.

The district hired a retired superintendent to do exit interviews with 11 employees last year, which resoundingly showed the district has a positive environment.

Going forward, Supt. Carol Martin recommends not using a consultant.

Martin, at a Committee of the Whole School Board meeting last month, suggested the interviews be done by someone in a leadership position but who doesn’t supervise many employees, which can deter people from being honest.

She suggested Director of Special Education Tamara O’Keefe conduct the interviews since she is only in charge of special education teachers.

In those cases, Martin said another administrator would conduct interviews.

O’Keefe would collect longitudinal data and make annual presentations to the board, Martin said.

Martin said she would like to offer surveys for employees leaving but prefers the personal interviews.

“There aren’t typically a lot of teachers that are leaving the district beyond retirement,” she said, but added, “We’re in an era now where there are more ins and outs in school districts than ever before.”

The board supported the idea, though it won’t vote on the issue until later.

“The recurring feedback is something that we’re interested in,” Board President Chad Hoopman said.