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Donald Schelke, Deckerville High School principal, is the board's number one choice to become the district's next school chief.

On May 21, following Schelke's second interview for the job, he was selected as the board's leading candidate on a 4-2 vote. At the same meeting, the board voted 5-1 to conduct only one community site visit -- for Schelke on May 27, which effectively eliminated the second finalist, Judy Foss, an assistant superintendent at Eaton Rapids Public Schools and former Deckerville resident.

When the school board met last Monday evening, it was expected to make the decision to hire Schelke. Instead, board members faced an audience of about 50 residents, about half of whom voiced concerns about not doing the site visit for Foss.

So the board voted to "step back and offer Judy an opportunity for a site visit," said Bill Kimball of the Michigan Leadership Institute, who is conducting the superintendent search for the board.

When Kimball contacted Foss Monday evening about the offer, she asked for some time to consider it. On Tuesday morning, she phoned Kimball and declined the offer, explaining, "she's going to stay in her current position for a couple more years," said Kimball.

Board President Tom O'Mara told the News Tuesday morning he was in the process of contacting board members about the "turn of events."

"We had a pool of six very good candidates (for superintendent)," said O'Mara. "And the process led us down to the final two, and ultimately to the final one. I have to put my faith in the process we followed and where it's led us."

In addition to Schelke, who has been principal since 1996, and Foss, the candidates included Tricia Pawlowski, technology director at Deckerville Schools, Tom Lukshaitis, director of state and federal programs at Sandusky Schools, Alan Piwinski, superintendent of North Branch Schools, and Chris Hammill, elementary principal in Utica.

If Schelke is hired, he'll succeed Alan Broughton, who will retire as superintendent on June 30.