SALT LAKE CITY — The Salt Lake City School District has selected its new superintendent.
In a meeting Tuesday night, the SLCSD school board announced that they had unanimously voted to appoint Timothy Gadson III, Ph.D., to the position. He will begin July 1 of this year pending contract negotiations.
READ: Some SLC students return to in-person classes after nearly a year of virtual learning
Gadson is currently the associate superintendent of high schools with Anoka-Hennepin Schools in Anoka, Minnesota.
He has a Bachelor’s degree in business economics and secondary education from Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, as well as both Master’s and Doctor of Philosophy degrees from Washington State University.
He was up against Jharrett Bryantt and Wendy González of Texas and Virginia, respectively.
"Dr. Gadson stood out for his focus on putting students first. In a district with so much diversity, robust academic programming, and a wide variety of student needs, we need a leader who will keep the focus where it needs to be: on our students,” the SLCSD school board's President Melissa Ford said.
“Our goal in this search was to select the best candidate for our district; someone who would represent what our community was looking for and who would put our students first. Dr. Gadson is a model of the most important attributes our community told us they wanted, and I know we’ll see great things from him here in the Salt Lake City School District," Vice President Nate Salazar added.
Gadson will take the place of Interim Superintendent Larry Madden, who was appointed to the position after the previous superintendent, Lexi Cunningham, resigned. Some say she was "targeted" and forced out, according to a report fromThe Salt Lake Tribune.
Madden is the principal of the Salt Lake Center for Science Education.
