GRANADA — The Granada-Huntley-East Chain School Board has made its choice for its new superintendent/principal: Doug Storbeck, currently the principal at St. James Public School.

The board, along with a panel of staff and citizens, interviewed three candidates on Tuesday evening. They were Storbeck; Shane Laffen, principal at Sleepy Eye Public; and Paul Blanford, former elementary principal at the Elmwood, Wis., school district.

Each candidate was interviewed for one hour and asked a variety of questions by the panel. Interviewers were told to look at personality, social intelligence and “soft skills.”

GHEC’s current superintendent, Mandy Fletcher, has accepted a position as superintendent at Blue Earth Area, effective July 1. The new GHEC superintendent also is slated to start July 1.

The position at GHEC was posted for 25 days. The school received 15 applications. South Central Service Cooperative consultants reviewed the applications and helped during the interview process.

Some candidates had superintendent experience in Minnesota, Wisconsin, Alaska and South Dakota, while some had no superintendent or principal experience.

The school board is in contract negotiations with Storbeck. A school board vote on a contract is slated for May 9.