Dr. Paul Freeman will leave his post as Griswold Superintendent of Schools on Nov. 18. In August, the school board announced current director of curriculum instruction and assessment John DiIorio will take over as the acting superintendent when Freeman leaves.

The search for Freeman's long-term successor is well underway, and the school board wants your input on what you'd like to see in a superintendent so they've created and posted a survey on the district's website.

It's one element that the district's hired recruiting consultant, the New England School Development Council (NESDEC), will use when looking for a new superintendent. NESDEC also met with three focus groups, one each made up of staff, administrators and town leaders.

(An interesting aside: when hiring NESDEC for the search, the BOE included contractual  language that would prohibit the consulting group from recruiting the new superintendent for four years after Griswold hires them. It's a smart tactic for a district that has seen tremendous turnover since longtime superintendent Elizabeth Osga left in 2008. The new superintendent will be the third since. Freeman signed a three-year contract with the district in 2009 after an eight-month stint by Ania J. Czajkowsk.)

Board of Education chairman Elizabeth Dorff said a new full-time superintendent probably wouldn't start until next summer, when they'd likely be released from their current positions. DiIorio has said he will not interview for the full time position.