The next seven months will be a whirlwind for Neil Convery, Alvin Vavro and David Korn.

The three newly elected members of the Butler School Board, who will be sworn in Dec. 3, will be part of a search to replace three of the district’s four top administrators.

Superintendent Mike Strutt, Assistant Superintendent Carolyn Cornish and business manager Cathy Rodgers announced Monday they will retire in June.

The outgoing leadership team has a combined 50 years of experience at the district, and when they’re gone only one assistant superintendent will remain — Brian Slamecka, assistant superintendent of secondary schools. He was appointed to the position a mere 15 months ago.

Administrators aren’t the only ones leaving. Incumbent school board members Helene Abramowitz, Paula Opalka and Linda Patten finish their terms this month. None of the three sought re-election.

The exodus of experience coincides with a critical period for Butler schools. That’s not to say any of the outgoing personnel had anything to do with the growing academic or financial challenges facing the district. To the contrary, they all are to be congratulated and thanked for a job well-done during difficult circumstances.

Nonetheless, challenges persist:

n A $94 million school budget for the current academic year raised the property tax rate by 2 mills, and still projects a $2.5 million spending deficit.

n Employee pension costs are at 16.93 percent of employee salaries in 2013-14, about $7.5 million. The same costs were 12.36 percent of employees’ salaries last year, or $5.2 million, and are expected to continue rising over the next few years.

n The board has dealt with the budget, in part, by reducing teaching staff in the face of falling student enrollment and with nearly-annual tax increases. About 55 teachers have retired in the past three years.

n But now parents are complaining about elementary school class sizes and the lack of computer science classes and instructors.

The same challenges existed in June 2012 when Mike Strutt was appointed superintendent. Strutt is a veteran employee of the Butler district, and his selection was a route of convenience for the board. Strutt was and is eminently qualified, but the board never searched outside the district for any candidate who might have been more qualified.

Now would be an ideal time to launch the superintendent search that did not precede Strutt’s appointment. The district can and should consider the benefit of fresh perspectives and energy from an outsider — particularly with no apparent successor of Strutt’s caliber waiting in the wings.

Now also would be an ideal time to launch a community discussion over what the district’s vision should be. While an incoming superintendent and a new school board will figure greatly in the shaping of the district’s vision, the community must have an opportunity to contribute to the vision as well. The taxpayers who fuel the district should have a say in who’s driving it.

The search must get organized immediately. It would be ideal to have an administrative team in place by July 1, the start of the coming academic year. That’s only seven months away — not much time to frame and launch an extensive talent search.

Best wishes to the administrators and school board members who are leaving. Words of support and encouragement to the existing and new board members as they undertake one of most important decisions facing the Butler community for many years to come.