The Seattle school system has chosen a former district administrator to serve as interim superintendent for one year as the school board conducts a wider search for a permanent superintendent.
The district says in a news release that Brent C. Jones will begin the job no later than July 1, 2021 with an end date of June 30, 2022.
"Dr. Jones' selection as the Interim Superintendent brings needed stability and connectivity to Seattle Public Schools during this time of uncertainty and transition," says Board President Chandra Hampson.
Jones is replacing Denise Juneau, who has led the district since 2018. She announced last year that she would be leaving the district in June 2021. That announcement came after the local NAACP called for her resignation and board members indicated the Juneau did not have the votes to get a contract extension.
[FROM December 2020: Seattle superintendent will leave at the end of the 2020-21 school year]
Jones previously served in the Seattle district as chief equity, partnerships, and engagement officer and assistant superintendent of Human Resources. Under his tenure, Seattle Public Schools began a district-wide racial equity strategy, leveraged public-private partnerships to accelerate student growth, embedded racial equity provisions into collective bargaining agreements, established a Civil Rights Compliance Office, and led innovative talent development and recruitment programs focused on workforce diversity and employee engagement.
"This past year has been difficult for students and families," Jones says. "Tough decisions and challenges continue to face the district. I look forward to working closely with the school board and staff to implement a clear, student-focused vision for this next school year."
Jones now works as the assistant general manager of strategy and partnerships at the King County, Wash., Metro Transit Department, where he leads policy development and strategy initiatives that drive the agency's social justice and pro-equity agendas.
The board says its decision to have an interim superintendent for one year will give it time to conduct a comprehensive search for a permanent superintendent. A formal search will be start no later than Fall 2021, and the board hopes to make a selection by April or May 2022.
