Anthony Hobra will be the new superintendent at Rudyard Area Schools following a 6-0 vote of the seven-person school board Monday, July 26.

Mr. Hobra comes to Rudyard from Cassopolis Ross Beatty Junior and Senior High School, near the Michigan-Indiana border, where he has been principal since 2006. He has been in charge of students grades seven through twelve. Before that, he was assistant principal at Waverly Community Schools in Lansing and was a counselor and alternative education director at Bath High School.

At times, Mr. Hobra has also served as both a guidance counselor and an athletic director.

School Board President JoDianne Cornwell said Mr. Hobra's background in counseling will strengthen his role as superintendent.

The field of candidates had been narrowed to two by Monday's meeting, with Mr. Hobra and current Rudyard Elementary School Principal Richard Smith, Jr. considered for the position. Mr. Smith has been with the school district for the past 12 years and oversees a preschoolthrough sixth grade building.

“It was a very tough decision,” Mrs. Cornwell said. “We're very pleased with our principal. He's done a marvelous job for us.”

Many of Mr. Smith's staff showed up to voice their support for the internal candidate. Mary Ellen McDonoff said the staff would support whoever was chosen, but expressed disappointment with a selection process she felt could have been more open.

“We wanted to hear more discussion,” she said. “We have to put our opinions out there for everyone to hear and see, in meetings and through surveys, we'd like the school board to let us in on their thought process as well.”

Mrs. Cornwell said she saw a glimpse of Mr. Hobra's capacity for handling less-than-ideal situations during his second interview.

“Some board members were engaged in a meeting that kept them later than they had hoped, causing them to be late,” she said. “Mr. Hobra handled it all in stride. He didn't give any indication that he was anxious or perturbed. I can see him handling tough situations with that same calm and poise. He seems like a very dynamic individual who's ready to learn and take on this new position.”

The board president also expressed that Mr. Hobra seemed the most likely to work with the existing structure in place.

Board member Robert Norton was absent from Monday's meeting.