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Four finalists named for superintendent of Aspen schools

Aspen Elementary School.
Anna Stonehouse/The Aspen Times

The final four

Four candidates remain in the running for the Aspen School District’s superintendent vacancy. Each finalist has an extensive background in education. They also have profiles on the job-networking website LinkedIn, where they provide summaries of their talents.

Here’s what they said:

David Baugh, Superintendent, Centennial School District (Pennsylvania)

“Creative, student centered leader with experience at elementary, middle and high school levels. Collaborative instructional leader with a proven record of creating educational ecologies to meet the developmentally appropriate needs of diverse populations and staff. A dynamic, public administrator committed to the welfare of the students and the organization.”

Tammy Clementi, executive, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

“My passion and life’s work is to serve, inspire, and influence educational leaders and teachers across this country in their ongoing pursuit to meet the academic, social, and emotional needs of all students.”

Tharyn Mulberry, Principal, Aspen High School)

“Proven track record in building-level administration, consistently achieved goals for achievement and enrollment at both a high school and a middle school. Demonstrated success in implementing innovative solutions to schools in need of improvement.”

Ann E. Schultz, executive director, Cherry Creek Academy

“Experienced Superintendent with a demonstrated history of over 25 years working in PK-12 public and public charter schools. Skilled in leading schools to improve student achievement, maximizing the talent of school teams, educational technology, instructional design, and differentiated instruction. Strong systems thinker with a passion to help every child be successful. A professional with a PhD in Educational Leadership from Marian University.”

Source: LinkedIn

The Board of Education has narrowed its field of Aspen School District superintendent candidates down to four, with three of the finalists, including an Aspen principal, coming from within the state and the other contender from Pennsylvania.

In an announcement made Thursday, the BOE said the candidates are David Baugh, superintendent of Centennial School District in Conshochoken, Pennsylvania; Aurora resident Tammy Clementi, who is national director of planning and analytics for Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Aspen High School Principal Tharyn Mulberry; and Ann Schultz, executive director of Cherry Creek Academy in Englewood.

All four finalists will make public appearances in Aspen next week.



From 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Monday, a meet-and-greet session with the candidates will be held at Aspen Middle School. At 8 a.m. Tuesday at Aspen High School, members of the BOE and an advisory group will conduct public interviews with the candidates.

The BOE could meet privately in an executive session later next week to discuss their choice for the opening, board president Susan Marolt said Wednesday. The future superintendent’s first day on the job is scheduled for July 1.




Since July, the Aspen School District has been operating under the leadership of interim Superintendent Tom Heald. Heald previously had been second-in-command to John Maloy, who retired from his post June 30 after the 2018-19 academic year, which was underscored by an administrative shake-up and the BOE’s launching of a climate and culture study of the district through a Denver consulting firm.

Maloy’s salary was $193,032 in 2018-19, according to the Colorado Department of Education. That was not high enough to place him among the state’s top-paid 20 superintendents, but it still made him the highest paid public school official in the Roaring Fork Valley. The state’s overall average pay for district superintendents was $123,850 in 2018-19, according the CDE.

Marolt said the next superintendent’s compensation will fall in the range of what Maloy was drawing.

“It will really depend on the candidate,” she said.

With the aid of Chicago-based search firm Hazard Young Attea Associates, the BOE began its national search for candidates during the December holidays. The search netted 24 qualified applicants.

HYA also created a leadership profile assessment for the next superintendent, basing the criteria on multiple meetings and discussions it had with district stakeholders in December.

Also having a voice in the process has been an advisory group comprised of more than 70 individuals, including parents, students, teachers, staff and the community at large.

The finalists

Baugh has been the superintendent of the Centennial School District, which is part of the greater Philadelphia area, since September 2015. Baugh, who received an Ed.D. in educational leadership from Seton Hall in 2010, said he has made multiple trips to Colorado over the years, including during his youth with a school church group.

He also visited Aspen during the early interviewing process. The area is attractive to him for many reasons, he said, including the fact that he has a daughter who works for Vail Resorts.

“(Aspen) caught my eye as it would catch any educator’s eye who loves the mountains and outdoor communities,” the self-described avid skier said in a phone interview. “And of course, I did a little research on the district and all of the great things it is doing. And it is probably in one of the most ideal geographic locations in the world, and it is an incredibly strong community.”

Clementi, who received her Ph.D. in educational leadership from the University of Denver in 2007, has been the national director of academic planning and analytics for Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, a publisher of text and academic books, since July 2014.

Her prior experience includes separate two-year stints as chief academic officer at Aurora Public Schools and Pueblo City Schools, as well as administrative and superintendent roles at Colorado school districts. She was an elementary school teacher for 14 years (1987 to 2001) in Colorado Springs.

Mulberry has been principal at Aspen High since July 2015, and has grown a loyal following since his arrival. Prior to coming to Aspen, Mulberry, who earned his master’s degree in educational leadership and administration from the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs in 2000, had been principal of Centennial High School (Pueblo) since May 2009. He also was principal of WH Heaton Middle School from May 2007 to June 2009.

“I just think that I’ve had such a great experience of being principal at Aspen High School, and I would like to bring success to the district level also,” said Mulberry, who applied for the position Jan. 17, the final day of the application period.

Schultz currently is the executive director of Cherry Creek Academy, a K-8 charter school in Englewood. Prior to coming to Colorado, she was an educator in Wisconsin, where she was the superintendent of the Mosinee School District from July 2013 to September 2018. She also held principal jobs at elementary, middle and high schools in Wisconsin. In 2011, Schultz received her Ph.D. in educational leadership from Marian University.

Clementi and Schultz could not be immediately reached for comment Wednesday.

rcarroll@aspentimes.com