CAPE SEES CHANGES IN UNIVERSITY, SCHOOL, CITY LEADERSHIP

Cape Girardeau city government, the public school district and Southeast Missouri State University have all had major leadership changes in the past year.

The city has a new city manager, the university has a new president while efforts continue to find a permanent one, and the school district has gone through a number of leadership changes, including buying out the contract of Dr. Neyland Clark as school superintendent last December.

The Cape Girardeau public schools were mired in controversy during 1995.

Last spring three school board members resigned in the wake of a controversy about questionable use of a district credit card. The Cape Girardeau County Commission appointed three new members to the board.

Then in December the board bought out the contracts of Clark and Dr. Tim Niggle, director of human resources.

Dr. Richard Bollwerk, assistant superintendent, was named interim superintendent.

In January the school board hired Dan Tallent, Central High School principal, as superintendent. He will begin his new job in July.

"Everybody seems to have a much more positive attitude now," said Bob Fox, board president. "I think we are to the point people are ready to trust the leadership."

Unlike Clark, Tallent has the support of school staff. "If you don't have the backing of staff and support people, then it is very, very difficult to get the backing of the community," said Fox.

For the city and university, leadership changes came more easily.

The City Council last August hired a new city manager, Michael Miller, a management consultant from Ferguson who previously directed city governments in Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota and South Dakota.

Miller began as city manager in Cape Girardeau in October. He replaced J. Ronald Fischer, who retired in late July after running the city for seven years.

"I always think that change is good," said Mayor Al Spradling III. "We have to have new ideas."

While the council was filling the top spot in city government, the university's Board of Regents was dealing with leadership changes too.

Dr. Kala Stroup resigned as Southeast's president to take a job as Missouri commissioner of higher education. The regents hired Cape Girardeau native Dr. Bill Atchley to serve as president while the university began a search for a permanent president.

Atchley, former president of Clemson University, took over Sept. 1 and has helped put the finishing touches on a strategic plan for the school's future.

"I think we have been extremely fortunate to have Dr. Atchley steering our ship during this interim period," said Regent Don Dickerson. "I think he has done a wonderful job for us."

A university search committee was formed last fall to recommend three to five finalists for president. In January the committee narrowed the field from 121 candidates to 14. Earlier this month the committee narrowed the field to eight.

The committee hopes to recommend finalists to the board by late March. The finalists will then visit the campus.

The regents hope to hire a president by late April. The goal is to have the president on board by the start of the 1996 fall semester.