- The State Board of Education will interview seven candidates to be the next state superintendent
- All semifinalists have superintendent experience on the district or state level
- Public interviews will take place next week
LANSING — Seven candidates are in the running to succeed the retiring Michael Rice as Michigan’s next state superintendent.
The State Board of Education selected semifinalists Tuesday and plans to begin interviews next week. The board is working with the Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates search firm to conduct the search.
The candidates include five current or former Michigan district superintendents, one former Virginia state superintendent and one consultant who had been previously up for a local Michigan superintendent job.
They were chosen from a field of more than 30 applicants for the $272,000-a-year job.
After the semifinalist interviews, the board is poised to select finalists and then formally name Rice’s replacement Sept. 9. The new superintendent’s first day on the job would be Oct. 4.
Here’s what we know:
Who are the finalists?
The seven semifinalists are:
Thomas Ahart, consultant/coach
He has worked with the Council of the Great City Schools and was previously the superintendent of Des Moines Public Schools in Iowa.
The Waterford School District in Michigan had entered contract negotiations in 2024 with Ahart to become its next superintendent but the parties failed to reach an agreement, the Oakland County Times reported.
Lisa Coons, formerly Virginia superintendent of public instruction
Coons was the state superintendent in Virginia for less than two years before resigning, the Virginia Mercury reported. She previously was the chief academic officer at the Tennessee Department of Education.
Glenn Maleyko, superintendent in Dearborn Public Schools
Maleyko has been the Dearborn superintendent since 2015. The Michigan Association of Superintendents & Administrators named Maleyko Superintendent of the Year in 2019.
Paul Salah, superintendent, Huron Valley Schools
Salah previously was the associate superintendent of educational services for Wayne Regional Educational Service Agency and an administrator at the Wayne-Westland Community Schools, according to his LinkedIn profile.
John Severson, executive director of the Michigan Association of Intermediate School Administrators.
Severson has been the executive director of MAISA since July 2022. Previously, he was the superintendent at Muskegon Area Intermediate School District and, before that, Harper Creek Community Schools.
Christopher Timmis, superintendent, Dexter Community Schools
Timmis has announced plans to retire from the district in February 2026, WEMU reports. Prior to that, he was the superintendent of Adrian Public Schools.
Judy Walton, curriculum director and superintendent of Harrison Community Schools
Walton has been the superintendent of the Harrison schools since 2022. Prior to that, she was a middle principal in the Grand Rapids area and previously an administrator in Forest Hills Public Schools, according to the Harrison schools website.
Related:
- As Michigan scores fall, state superintendent blames local control ‘run amok’
- Michigan’s state Superintendent Michael Rice will retire later this year
Who applied?
There were 34 applicants including 23 who requested that their applications be kept confidential and 10 who allowed their applications to be disclosed publicly. None of the 10 made the list of semifinalists. One person withdrew their application.
The 10 candidates who did not request to be anonymous were:
- David Baugh, most recently executive director of the Aspen Valley Ski & Snowboard Club)
- Nkenge Bergan, vice president for Student Development Services and special assistant to the provost, Kalamazoo Valley Community College
- Dwayne Brown, adjunct faculty member, Oakland Community College
- Victor Bugni, executive director of instructional services, Saginaw Intermediate School District
- Sherry Gay-Dagnogo, board member, Detroit Public Schools Community District
- Michael Haynes, director of Instructional Services, Charlevoix-Emmet Intermediate School District
- Vittoria Jimerson, most recently professor of logistics at Defense Acquisition University, part of the US Department of Defense
- John Searles, superintendent, Midland County Educational Service Agency)
- Adam Spina, superintendent, Williamston Community Schools
- Mandy Stewart, superintendent, Charlotte Public Schools
How much will the new state superintendent be paid?
The “salary will be up to $272,000 plus a comprehensive state benefits package,” according to a recruitment flyer.
Rice is paid $264,244 annually, according to MDE.
What happens next?
The board will conduct interviews with the semifinalists on Monday, Aug. 18 and Tuesday, Aug. 19.
After those interviews, the board is poised to select and interview finalists.
Once finalist interviews are completed, the board will select the next state superintendent.
You can find a more detailed timeline on MDE’s website.
Thank you to our Education Watch sponsors
Education Watch is made possible by generous financial support from our sponsors. Please visit the About page for more information and to subscribe to Education Watch. Interested in becoming a sponsor? Contact Emma Carr.
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under our Republication Guidelines. Questions? Email republishing@bridgemi.com
