The Akron Board of Education has landed on four superintendent finalists after meeting more than six hours in executive session Wednesday night.
The final four candidates are interim Akron superintendent Mary B. Outley; Nia Campbell, chief academic officer for Aurora Public Schools in Colorado; Jermain Dawson, chief academic officer for Birmingham City Schools in Alabama; and Michael C. Robinson Jr., academic officer for East Baton Rouge Parish School System in Louisiana.
The board had narrowed that list down to seven candidates it had chosen earlier this month. The district has a tight timeline for the search, hoping to conduct interviews and choose the superintendent by the end of next week. The superintendent is expected to start on August 1.
Outley has worked at Akron Public Schools for more than 30 years, with much of that time spent as executive director of elementary education. Before that, she got her start as a teacher and principal, according to resume materials.
Campbell was a principal and assistant principal at several public schools in Florida after a seven-year stint as a math teacher at Hillsborough County Public Schools in Florida, according to her resume. Campbell was accused by several students of battery during her time as a high school principal in 2019, stemming from an incident where she pulled students from a crowd at a basketball game. She was never charged or disciplined for the matter, despite a misdemeanor charge being recommended by police, according to the Denver Gazette. She told the Gazette she stands by her behavior.
Robinson was superintendent of Pine Bluff School District in Arkansas and had a stint as a leadership coach in Texas before his time at East Baton Rouge, according to his resume. Before that, he had administrative and principal jobs at public schools in Maryland and Georgia after about six years spent as a teacher.
Dawson had administrative jobs in Florida, Alabama and Texas – mostly responsible for regions of public schools – between 2014 and 2020 before his current role at Birmingham City Schools, according to his resume. He also had a one-year stint as a high-level administrator for Charter Schools USA in Florida, a major charter school network that operates almost 90 schools. He also got his start as a teacher.
