The Duval County School Board now has less than two weeks to name an interim superintendent.
Board members have spent the last week discussing their options internally and are expected to have a more detailed look at some of the candidates on Tuesday.
Board members threw around a few names last week but didn’t settle on a list of finalists.
One name that was mentioned several times when board members met last week was Dr. Dana Kriznar, who’s served as deputy superintendent since 2019. She’s also worked in the district for more than 30 years.
At least week’s board meeting, members stressed the importance of picking an internal candidate.
“Given the short period of time, I mean, I think we need someone who is in the know with what’s going on in our district,” said board member Warren Jones, who represents District 5. “And someone that can provide a smooth as possible transition.”
Darryl Willie, who represents District 4, agreed.
“I think that we need to have somebody in-house and give ourselves space to not rush the process,” he said. ” We can do it the right way and we set ourselves up and we have Dr. Kriznar, being one, who can get us there.”
Some board members also suggested looking outside the district for filling the role of superintendent for the long term.
“Every name I submitted is a retired superintendent from the state of Florida, and I think there are some strong leaders from Florida,” said board member Lori Hershey, who represents District 7.
Retiring Superintendent Dr. Diana Greene’s last day is June 2, and members must choose a temporary replacement by June 5.
Greene is retiring early following a series of investigations into the district that started with the arrest of longtime Douglas Anderson School of the Arts teacher Jeffrey Clayton.
The school board approved an early severance package worth more than $100,000.
The board is looking to hire someone for up to six months to fill the interim role, which is how long they think it will take to find a permanent replacement.