JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Duval County School Board selected six semifinalists on Tuesday morning to remain in the running to become the next superintendent of Duval County Public Schools.
The board said an initial round last fall didn’t produce enough qualified applicants but this go around, 20 people applied to replace Dr. Diana Greene, who left the role nearly a year ago.
When the board initially advertised the job last year, it only received 10 applications, and about half of those met the minimum qualifications the board wanted to see. That led to the district suspending the search process, and extending the contract of interim superintendent Dr. Dana Kriznar through June.
The semifinalists include Dr. Christopher Bernier, Adam Taylor, Dr. Daniel Smith, Dr. Joe Phillips, Dr. Cheryl Proctor and Luis Solano. (Click each link to read their cover letter and resume)
The district’s minimum qualifications for the job include leadership at the district/cabinet level in a district approaching 25,000 students or more, or current or past experience as a school superintendent.
Semifinalists will have to submit responses to those questions by May 1 to the Florida School Boards Association, which is assisting the district with the search.
Finalists will then be chosen at a May 7 board meeting and will be interviewed on May 13 and 14.
The district plans to then select a superintendent at a special board meeting on May 23, then begin contract negotiations with the chosen candidate.
The contract is slated to be approved at a June 4 meeting, with a projected start date for the new superintendent of July 1.
Duval County Public Schools is picking a leader at a critical time. Like many districts, it is facing issues with student test scores, absenteeism and teacher recruitment.
Additionally, a billion-dollar shortfall in a plan to renovate and rebuild schools coupled with declining enrollment has led to a proposal to close nearly 30 schools, drawing backlash from some families.
The district has also been under scrutiny for how it handled allegations of teacher misconduct in the past, hiring an outside law firm to conduct an investigation the results of which have yet to be released.
RELATED: DCPS knew Douglas Anderson teacher was arrested in February but he remained in the classroom until last week | ‘My high school hell’: Letters from former Douglas Anderson students detail years of anguish involving accused teacher
When the search process first began last year, more than 3,600 people participated in a survey about the qualities they want to see in the next superintendent. Respondents said they wanted a superintendent who leads with integrity, has a background in education, and can lead a diverse district.
Dr. Bernier was the superintendent of Lee County Schools, in the Ft. Myers area, from 2022 until resigning recently as he applied for other jobs. That district has about 100,000 students.
Taylor has been working as a consultant since 2020. Before that, he was superintendent for two years of Rutland City Public Schools in Vermont, which serves about 2,500 students.
Dr. Smith is Chief of Staff at Loudoun County Public Schools in Virginia, which has a student population of more than 80,000.
Dr. Phillips is the Chief Information Officer at Broward County Public Schools in Ft. Lauderdale, which serves more than 260,000 students.
Dr. Proctor has been deputy superintendent of Portland Public Schools in Oregon since 2022. That district serves more than 44,000 students.
Solano has been with the Detroit Public Schools Community District, which has a student population of about 50,000, since 2017, serving as deputy superintendent and chief operating officer.
These semifinalists will now answer questions from the board, some with written answers, others with video responses.
“We have some folks who have done the job, similar size district before, we have some who been sort of assistant a second in charge that are ready to make that next move. So it’ll be interesting to see how they answer the questions that the board members have come up with,” School Board Chair Darryl Willie said. “Each of us got to select a question that was really sort of near and dear to what we believe we want to see in a candidate. So getting to see each of those answers to those questions is going to be critical to get them from this stage to that next stage. But I’m confident that we have the next superintendent of Duval schools in this pool of six.”
Willie said he thinks the applicant pool is more robust this time around because of timing.
Finalists will be chosen next month, they will be interviewed in Jacksonville and appear at a community meet and greet, the details of which have not yet been announced.
The district has advertised the position at a salary of $275,000 to $350,000.