Five weeks ago, the Concordia Parish School Board voted a three-way tie for the new superintendent, in the end choosing to name Fred Butcher interim superintendent.

Tuesday night, the board deadlocked again, choosing this time to readvertise for the position.

School board members will now have to wait another 30 days to readvertise the position and another two weeks before they can interview and &uot;hopefully&uot; appoint a superintendent.

That means at least 45 days until board members decide who will permanently lead the district.

The interesting statistics of a three-way tie aside, the delay is frustrating for parents, teachers and students waiting for permanent leadership.

While we don’t think the school district will be hurt by the interim leadership of Butcher, the students, teachers and principals need the stability a permanent choice will bring, whether it is Butcher or another candidate.

And that chosen candidate needs time to assess the parish’s needs and begin implementing a plan to continue improvement throughout the district.

Concordia Parish has seen a bump in test scores recently &045; most notably at Ferriday High, which was taken off the state’s academic watch list.

We want to see that improvement continue &045; and the vision of a permanent leader can help.