South-Western City Schools identifies five superintendent candidates
The South-Western City School District has identified five candidates for first-round interviews as the district works to fill its open superintendent position.
The district board of education identified the candidates during a Wednesday special meeting.
The search for a new superintendent comes after longtime superintendent Bill Wise told the board he was resigning on March 11, and would remain superintendent until April 1, the Dispatch previously reported.
Wise worked for 17 years for the district and has been serving a new role as the special assistant to the superintendent since April 1. He earned a $264,580 salary as superintendent and his new position is a continuation of that contracted salary.
Here's what we know about the five candidates for South-Western City School District superintendent:
Randy Banks
Randy Banks is the assistant superintendent of Worthington City Schools. Before his current position, Banks served as director of human resources for Worthington City Schools and personnel director for certified staff at South-Western City Schools, ThisWeek previously reported.
Todd Hoadley
Todd Hoadley is the current superintendent of Tolles Career and Technical Center and has held three other superintendent positions at Dublin City Schools, Olmstead Falls City Schools and Van Buren Local Schools.
Established in 1974, Tolles Career and Technical Center is located south of Plain City and serves students from Dublin, Fairbanks, Jonathan Alder, Hilliard, London, Madison-Plains and Jefferson Local school districts.
In 2021, Hoadley stepped down from his position at Dublin City Schools due to COVID-19 related stressors, ThisWeek previously reported. On March 8 2021, he read from a statement about his decision to step down that although he enjoyed being a superintendent, "it has become clear that the divisions in society have found their way into school governance in bigger and bolder ways."
Jamie Lusher
Jamie Lusher, deputy superintendent of South-Western City Schools, has been with the district since 2021 and previously worked as deputy superintendent at Grandview Heights for seven years.
Prior to that, she served as the academic achievement coordinator for Worthington City Schools, principal of Wilson Hill Elementary School in Worthington School District and principal at New Albany Middle School. Lusher holds a doctorate in education from Ohio University.
Chris Papouras
Chris Papouras, superintendent of Euclid City Schools, has worked in that role since August 2019 and is local to the Euclid area. He was previously the principal of Chardon Hills Magnet School from 2012 to 2019 and also served as assistant principal at Forest Park Middle School and Upson Elementary School.
He has worked for 20 years in education and worked in other positions like classroom teacher, teacher union president and coach.
Papouras holds a masters in education in educational administration and a superintendent licensure from Cleveland State University.
Walter Skaggs
Walter Skaggs, superintendent of St. Clairsville-Richland City Schools, has held the position since 2008 and also served as St. Clairsville High School principal between 2011 and 2018. Skaggs earned a doctorate in education from Ohio University.
What comes next?
In a news release, the board of education said it has spent much time evaluating each candidate for their experience, leadership acumen and based on valued input from our community.
“We were incredibly impressed by both the quality of leadership and experiences of applicants who made their candidacy known to us through the submission of their application for the superintendent position,” board president Chris Boso said in the release.
First-round interviews are scheduled for next Tuesday and Wednesday in executive sessions with the board, which will then evaluate the candidates further and invite finalists for second-round interviews that are scheduled on June 3 and 4.
South-Western City School District is located in the southwest corner of Franklin County and serves Darbydale, Franklin Township, a portoin of Columbus, Grove City, Pleasant Township, Prairie Township, Urbancrest and Westland. It is the third largest school district in central Ohio with over 21,000 students, behind Columbus City Schools and Olentangy Local Schools.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: South-Western City Schools identifies five superintendent candidates
