Interviews of two candidates for the position of Butler County Superintendent will be held Saturday at the central office boardroom. A reception will be held at 9 a.m. with the first interview scheduled for 10 a.m.

John R. Phillips, of South Carolina, will be the first interviewed.

Phillips said if he is hired as superintendent, he would work to continue what the BOE has already accomplished.

“When you look at Butler County compared to other similar school districts, they have a lot to be proud of,” Phillips said. “I want the chance to connect with people and get a feel for what direction they would like their schools to move in.”

A reception will be held for candidate Allin Whittle at 1 p.m., with a 2 p.m. interview to follow.

Whittle said he too had plans on reaching out to the community for ideas.

“We need to bring all the stakeholders – the students, the parents and the teachers – back to the table to review where we are, where we’ve been and where we want to be,” he said.

Whittle said one of his strengths is his longevity in this county, and the fact that he already knows this school system.

“We’ve come from low test scores to scores we are proud of while decreasing our dropout rate,” Whittle said. “Working with funding is going to be tantamount to moving forward.”

Phillips said he believes his experiences would lend itself well to this position.

“I enjoy troubleshooting, and my background is in motivational and learning theory,” Phillips said. “Everyone wants to be successful in life, you just have to work to get them to believe in themselves.”

Phillips said he wanted to keep learning fun for teachers and students alike.

“When you enjoy doing something, you don’t get tired of it,” Phillips said. “When you have relevant instruction that is not boring, a lot of problems take care of themselves.“

Both candidates emphasized the importance of reaching out to students and parents.

“Communication is more than just sharing ideas,” Whittle said. “A lot of it has to do with listening.”

Phillips said progress would keep parents interested.

“When you are doing something wholesome and showing good results, people want to be a part of it,” Phillips said.

The interviews of Kathy Murphy and Darren Douthitt are scheduled for 10 am. and 2 p.m. March 13.