Two administrators at Brandywine Community Schools will interview next week for the opportunity to become the district’s next superintendent.

The school board will interview Karen Weimer, Merritt Elementary School principal, at 6 p.m. Monday, July 18, in the media center of Brandywine Middle/Senior High School.

Patrick Weckel, Brandywine High School principal, will be interviewed at 7:30 p.m. on the same day.

Gary Rider, who is leading the school district’s superintendent search, announced the interview schedule on Monday, saying Weimer and Weckel were the only two candidates who applied after the district opened the search to internal candidates last month.

The search began after Supt. John Jarpe announced his intention to retire after his contract expires at the end of the 2016/17 school year.

Board President Janis Exner said she hopes to see many members of the community at the interviews, which are open to the public.

“It will be very important for the board to have their input during the process,” she said in a prepared statement.

Weimer has worked as Merritt Elementary School’s principal since 1999 and was a teacher in the Brandywine district from 1988 to 1999. She holds a master’s degree in education leadership and a bachelor’s degree in education, both from Western Michigan University.

Weimer said she was appointed as acting superintendent of Brandywine from August to October of 2003 during a superintendent transition. She also said she was the assistant to the interim superintendent from January to June of 2007 when the superintendent at that time left for another position.

“To me it is a natural next step,” Weimer said. “I’ve been in the district for 28 years and a principal for 17 years. I think I will have more of an impact as superintendent and it intrigues me to do that.”

Weckel has been principal of Brandywine High School since 2009. Prior to that, he was high school principal at Berrien Springs from 2006 to 2009, principal at Bridgman Middle School from 2001 to 2006, assistant middle school principal at Constantine from 1999 to 2001 and a middle school teacher at Wayland from 1994 to 1999. He has a master’s degree in education leadership from Grand Valley State University and a bachelor’s degree in secondary education from Western Michigan University.

Weckel also said he completed two superintendent preparatory programs, one from the Michigan Association of School Administrators and one from the Michigan Leadership Institute.

“I have been a part of this community for a long time,” Weckel said. “It would be an honor and privilege to continue to serve the students, staff and community of Brandywine. We have accomplished so much in academics, fine arts, career and technical education and athletics. I would like to lead the team to keep us focused and moving forward.”

The board plans to schedule second round interviews, if necessary, a week after the first interviews.

Rider said the board would have the option of opening up the search to external candidates in the winter if the board determines Weimer and Weckel are not the right fit for the job.

However, if one of the internal candidates are chosen, Rider said they would have an opportunity to job shadow with Jarpe while maintaining their current roles.

“The timing of doing it now is so that if the board decides that one of the two is the right fit then they’d be able to experience getting ready for opening day in August,” Rider said. “That is a big deal for superintendents.”