Fayette board names 5 superintendent finalists from across U.S. NAACP asks for more time.

Education leaders from across the United States are among the finalists for Fayette County Public Schools’ next superintendent.

The five finalists were announced Monday night as the NAACP asked for more public interaction with the candidates.

The finalists are: Christopher Bernier, chief of staff of the Clark County, Nev., school district; Melvin Brown, Superintendent of the Reynoldsburg City Schools in Ohio; Angela Dominguez, assistant superintendent of academic services for the Edgewood Independent School district in Texas; Tawana Grover, superintendent of Grand Island Public Schools in Grand Island, Neb.; and Demetrus Liggins, superintendent of schools in Greenville Independent School District in Texas.

“We’re excited about the possibilities that each candidate could bring to FCPS and can’t wait to introduce their incredible talents to our community,” board chair Tyler Murphy said.

School board members are hiring a replacement for Manny Caulk who died in December 2020. Caulk had been superintendent since 2015. Marlene Helm has been the acting superintendent since Caulk’s death.

Public virtual forums will take place online between 4:30 and 8 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday and the public can also attend those in person at the former district Central Office on Main Street. The public can engage with candidates in person when they visit Fayette County on Wednesday, June 2 from 7 to 8:30 p.m., at Frederick Douglass High School.

Fayette school board members want to have the new superintendent on the job for the start of the 2021-2022 school year. They are expected to choose the superintendent in June.

The candidates drew praise from several education advocates, with Brigitte Ramsey, executive director of the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence saying her group was excited by the slate. Fayette County Education Association Vice President Kyla Trahan said the finalists were “diverse and impressive.”

“I am obviously pleased at the diversity of our applicants; it is clear the search firm took to heart our hiring priorities for our next superintendent,” Outgoing 16th District PTA President Penny Christian said. “I look forward to doing a deeper dive into their track records on equity and family engagement.”

District officials provided the following details on the candidates Monday night:

Christopher Bernier

Bernier serves as the chief of staff for the Clark County School District in Las Vegas, Nev., the 5th largest school district in the U.S. with more than 310,000 students and 42,000 employees.

As chair of the Diversity, Inclusion and Equity Committee for Goals and Objectives, he achieved a more than 10 percent increase in graduation rates, revitalized magnet programs, and created unique partnerships for college and career pathways for students. Previously, he oversaw 200,000 students as the associate superintendent of Orange County Public Schools in Orlando, Fla. His career began in 1987 in Orange County—the 9th largest district in the nation—and included positions as a high school and middle school principal, assistant principal, dean of students, history teacher, athletic director, and coach.

Bernier earned his undergraduate degree in history and education from Le Moyne College in Syracuse, NY, a master’s degree in educational leadership from Nova Southeastern and his doctorate in educational leadership from the University of Central Florida.

Melvin Brown

Since 2017, Brown has served as the superintendent of Reynoldsburg City Schools, a district with 7,300 students in metropolitan area Columbus, Ohio. Prior to this role, he was associate superintendent at Prince William County Public Schools in Virginia, a district of 89,000 students and a county population of 400,000.

While at Reynoldsburg, Brown addressed district inequities in high school programming, including Advanced Placement and College Credit Plus enrollment. In his 22 years of school administrative experience, he has served as a deputy superintendent and director of human resources in Cuyahoga Falls City Schools, regional vice president for an education company, and has several years of service as an elementary and high school principal, a coach, a supervisor of multicultural education, and a teacher.

Brown holds a Doctor of Education in educational studies and educational administration from The Ohio State University, a Master of Arts in educational administration and supervision from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, Virginia, and a Bachelor of Arts in English from James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Va.

Angela Dominguez

Dominguez serves as the assistant superintendent of academic services in Edgewood Independent School District in San Antonio, Texas, a large, urban district of about 10,000 students. Previously, she served as the district’s chief of secondary schools and executive director of school leadership.

Dominguez has provided equitable opportunities for students in Edgewood, a high-poverty district. She improved academic accountability from a D grade to a C, was a Principal of the Year semi-finalist by a Texas-based corporation, and recognized as the Bilingual Administrator of the Year by a local chapter of bilingual educators.

She obtained her Bachelor of Arts in history from Dartmouth College and her Master of Science in educational administration from Texas A & M University -- Kingsville. She is currently in the Cooperative Superintendency Program at The University of Texas at Austin where she is in the research phase of her dissertation on how to retain high quality principals in high-poverty, urban schools.

Tawana Grover

Grover is superintendent of Grand Island Public Schools in Grand Island, Neb., a district of over 10,000 students. Prior to becoming a superintendent in 2016, she served in leadership roles in DeSoto Independent Schools --a suburban district of Dallas, Texas, with 10,000 students --as chief human resource officer, executive director of federal programs, director of special programs, and principal.

Grover championed equity work in the Grand Island Public School district to accelerate her mission of creating a level playing field for every student. Her work led to the development of a district Equity Value Statement, a resolution on eliminating racism that was adopted by the Board of Education, and the formation of a district equity framework.

She increased student achievement in 75 percent of “Needs Improvement” schools and increased the number of students scoring 20 or above on the ACT by 5.4 percent within two years.

Grover earned a Ph.D. in special education from University of North Texas; an Ed.S. in educational leadership from Doane University; an Ed.S. in elementary/educational leadership from Auburn University Montgomery; and a M.S. and B.S. in elementary education, both from Auburn University Montgomery.

Demetrus Liggins

Liggins has served since 2016 as superintendent of schools in Greenville Independent School District, an urban district of 5,000 students outside of Dallas, Texas.

Previously, he was a bilingual/Spanish classroom teacher; an assistant principal; an elementary, middle, and high school principal; and an area superintendent of schools, in districts with as many as 35,000 students.

Liggins increased student outcomes at all levels, including minority and economically-disadvantaged students’ performance, led the creation of a 5-year strategic plan and graduate profile, and transitioned several traditional schools to schools of choice, which helped improve equity across the district. He was named an Inspiring Leader by the Texas Association of School Administrators and was among the first to complete the American Association of School Administrators National Superintendent Certification. He earned the Distinguished Leadership Award from Texas A&M University in Commerce, Texas.

Liggins received his bachelor’s in education and master’s degree in English from California State University, Fresno and a Master of Education and superintendent certification from Stephen F. Austin State University. He received his Ph.D. in K-16 educational leadership and policy from University of Texas-Arlington.

Earlier Monday, Lexington-Fayette NAACP asked school board members to extend the final stage of the superintendent search to take place over the next two weeks, rather than in a one-week span that ends with Memorial Day weekend.

Shambra Mulder, chair of the NAACP Education Committee, said after final candidates were announced Monday at the school board meeting there will be just one week for public comment. But she said after the candidates were announced that, “We appreciate the racial diversity and varied professional experiences of the candidates. We look forward to getting more information about them ... from the search committee. We also appreciate an opportunity to meet them in-person. “

“The NAACP has previously reported FCPS’s own data which has consistently shown racial disparities in student achievement, student discipline practices, and teacher hiring. These inequities have been exacerbated during the pandemic,” Mulder said in a statement. “The next superintendent will need to develop a plan to address these issues and present a plan for how the district plans to spend $150 million in increased federal funding.”