Manatee Officials to Initiate Process for Superintendent Recruitment

BRADENTON, Fla. — The Manatee County School Board is taking significant steps in its pursuit of a new superintendent.

Members aim to select a consulting firm to assist in the search, as well as establish a timeline for the interview process.

Charlie Kennedy, who represents District 3, indicates that the goal is to have a new superintendent selected and under contract by the start of school on August 11.

Kennedy emphasizes the importance of finding a high-quality candidate for the role. He commented, “It would be nice to have somebody in by the start of the year to kick off the school year with new leadership, but the most important thing is getting it right.”

This search is deemed a “compressed” timeline compared to the last one, which took approximately seven to eight months to appoint Dr. Wysong, who served for nearly two school years before being terminated last month.

Dr. Wysong’s termination agreement specifies that he will remain with the district until mid-August, serving as an “Administrative Transitional Consultant.”

Manatee County has grappled with instability in its leadership over the past 12 years, with former superintendents Rick Mills and Diana Greene each serving only a few years between 2013 and 2018. In 2018, the district opted against a nationwide search and appointed Deputy Superintendent Cynthia Saunders as interim superintendent. Saunder’s tenure was marred by allegations of inflated graduation rates, and she eventually retired in 2022, prompting the recent superintendent search.

Kennedy emphasizes the necessity of hiring a candidate with experience in Florida, noting, “The Florida education landscape is rocky with finance and education law and ongoing cultural issues. We need someone capable of navigating that. I want to see us cast the widest net possible.”

Currently, at least three consulting firms have submitted proposals to lead the superintendent search.