With a week to go before school begins, Dallas ISD officials are working to fill 13 principal positions.

The number is about the same as in previous Augusts. What's different is that this year, the district is using a new approach that gives parents, teachers and students more say in selecting their principal.

Applicants interview with a committee of at least a dozen people, including district staffers, a counselor, parents, and, at high schools, a student. The committee asks prospective principals to describe how they would deal with campus-specific needs, such as safety. Then panelists present a range of situations that could crop up on the job, and ask the applicant to prioritize them. Orlando Riddick, the new principal at W.T. White High School, praised the idea of including people he'll work with in his new job.

"The process of presenting to the stakeholders is a wonderful process," he said.

Mr. Riddick said he made a 45-minute presentation to the committee, then answered questions.

"It is much different than what I've been a part of in two other school districts," he said.

Superintendent Michael Hinojosa said including the public adds time to the process, but is worth it. He's used this sort of hiring process in his last three school districts, he said, and he believes it gives the community a better understanding of a new principal's vision.

"There's no more important decision than having a good principal," he said. "I believe in consensus decision-making. In the past, we just assigned people."

In the past, a single administrator could recommend a principal candidate to the superintendent, said Steve Flores, the district's chief administrative officer. The new hiring method has made the community more aware when a school is getting a new principal, he said.

"They have input in picking their principal," Dr. Flores said "In the past, you wouldn't have heard anything."

All told, DISD had 42 principal vacancies to fill for the coming school year. Some will replace people who are retiring, resigning, being promoted or being reassigned. Two are going to new schools. About half a dozen will replace principals who lost their positions for misusing district credit cards.

Schools whose positions aren't filled by the start of classes Aug. 27 will have an interim principal, Dr. Flores said.

Joseph Cirasuolo, chief operating officer at the American Association of School Administrators, said involving the community in an advisory role to select a principal is not unique. But he said the level of involvement given in Dallas is unusual.

"I think they [the DISD community] probably have more authority than is the case in most cases around the country," he said.

Some employees are also praising DISD's process.

Steven Goodall, who has taught in DISD 32 years, said the new hiring process eliminates the appearance of a "good ol' boy system, and it allows for the principal to make a contract with his or her faculty and community."

W.T. White teacher Patricia Gage, a 38-year DISD veteran who helped hire Mr. Riddick, called the new process "wonderful."

"It was a very fair and interesting process," she said. "It made us feel a lot of confidence in DISD letting us help select our principal. I feel a great deal of ownership in our principal."

Ms. Gage said the school's selection committee included four central office administrators, four parents, four teachers, a counselor, a paraprofessional and a student.

Dr. Flores said the hiring process takes at least three to four weeks and begins with a solicitation for applications that outlines the job's requirements. A district committee screens the application packages; the applicants they recommend move forward.

That's when the campus-based selection committee comes in.

After hearing candidates' presentations, the committee recommends names to the superintendent for hire. If members want, they can rank their preferences.

Dr. Flores said the new process attracted more applicants from outside DISD. So far, two outside candidates have been hired and at least 22 internal applicants have been promoted to open positions.

Dr. Flores said the district will not skip any steps to fill slots, even this close to the start of school.

"It is critical that we have people in place," he said. "But at the same time, we're not going to rush the process unless we get a match."