White Center Now: The blog about White Center

Who will lead Highline Public Schools when Dr. Susan Enfield leaves as superintendent? The district has announced three finalists, and town halls next week during which you’ll hear from them, one finalist at a time. Here’s the announcement:

The Highline Public Schools Board of Directors named three finalists for the position of superintendent of Highline Public Schools, following a community engagement process.

The finalists are:

Dr. Concie Pedroza
Dr. Keisha Scarlett
Dr. Ivan Duran

“Through our community process, Highline Public Schools community members laid out high expectations for our next superintendent,” said School Board President Aaron Garcia. “These highly qualified candidates are a result of that community process and each of them reflects the qualifications and characteristics our constituents told us they value.”

Dr. Concie Pedroza began her career as a classroom teacher and later served as an elementary, K-8 and high school principal. She currently serves as the associate superintendent in Seattle Public Schools, the largest district in Washington state, overseeing schools, academics, student services and African American male achievement.

Dr. Keisha Scarlett is chief academic officer for Seattle Public Schools and formerly served as chief of equity, partnerships, and engagement. Dr. Scarlett has dedicated her career to advocating for academic opportunities and environments that tap into students’ inherent brilliance, particularly those furthest from educational justice.

Dr. Ivan Duran is a proud product of public education. An early passion for reading and learning sparked his interest in being an educator. He has served more than 30 years in public education and is currently chief of acceleration and recovery for the Renton School District. From 2017 to 2021, Dr. Duran was superintendent of the Bellevue School District.

To read more about the finalists, visit the Highline website at: highlineschools.org/finalists

Next week, the finalists will each spend a day in Highline where they will tour schools and meet with students, a few stakeholder groups and school board members. Each day will end in a virtual town hall. At the end of each town hall, the community will immediately have an opportunity to provide feedback on the finalists through an online form.

Town Hall with Dr. Concie Pedroza
Monday, February 14
6:15-7:00 p.m.

Town Hall with Dr. Keisha Scarlett
Tuesday, February 15
6:15-7:00 p.m.

Town Hall with Dr. Ivan Duran
Thursday, February 17
6:15-7:00 p.m.

The questions to be asked of the candidates at the town halls are pre-selected. Some of the questions were generated through a community-wide ThoughtExchange. Student moderators will emcee the town halls and ask the questions.

To watch the town hall, visit the Highline website at: highlineschools.org/townhalls

To provide feedback on the finalists, visit the Highline website at: highlineschools.org/feedback

The School Board anticipates appointing a superintendent following the finalists visits. The new superintendent will begin on July 1, 2022.

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