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The Albuquerque Board of Education can't go wrong if it hires a superintendent who will make the schools safer, fire incompetent teachers and listen to students, parents and teachers, surveys indicate.

Results of a scientific telephone public opinion poll, a student survey, feedback from community forums and an Internet questionnaire were presented today to the school board by Brian Sanderoff, president of Research and Polling Inc.

The board paid $35,000 for the information gleaned from about 3,000 responses that will help define the job description, as well as the goals, for the next superintendent.

After summarizing the results, Sanderoff said the demands on the district's next leader will be great.

"I wouldn't want to be the next superintendent," he said. "It's a tough job."

Students stressed the need for safety in their schools, Sanderoff said.

"Some students fear for their personal safety," he said. Also, the students want "to know people in the classroom are not pedophiles."

Overall, the phone survey respondents gave the district a "C" rating in the scientific poll, an indication the district is perceived as mediocre, Sanderoff said.

"There's definitely room for improvement," he said. The phone survey found 24 percent of the respondents rating the district with "Ds and Fs" and 41 percent with "Cs."

Another survey conducted independently by the Albuquerque Teachers Federation indicated teachers want "a listener" and an "ethical leader" for superintendent.

The board has launched a search for Superintendent Beth Everitt's successor. Everitt will retire from Albuquerque Public Schools at the end of her contract June 30. The board intends to hire her replacement before she leaves the district.

The tentative hiring date is March 9.

About 600 teachers responded to the union's survey.

"From the comments I read, they want a leader who is knowledgeable, flexible and ethical," said union President Ellen Bernstein.

"Everybody that responded wants to be respected as an employee, and they all used the word listen. Listen to us in the schools, listen to what's going on."