New Orleans is one step closer to having a new superintendent of schools.
On Thursday evening, Orleans Parish School Board members voted for three semifinalist candidates to move forward to the first round of interviews.
The candidates are interim superintendent NOLA Public Schools Fateama Fulmore; Sharon Clark, a longtime charter school leader and state board of education member; and Dedrick Sims, CEO of a nonprofit that aims to help young men of color.
The search for a new district leader comes after Avis Williams, who was hired as schools chief in 2022 following a national search, stepped down abruptly in November amid a district financial crisis. Fulmore, who was Williams' deputy, was appointed as interim superintendent. Under state law, the school board must select a permanent replacement within six months.
NOLA Public Schools started the superintendent search in January. Candidates had until March 16 to submit applications.
More than 20 people applied. Board members considered applications anonymously, with the candidates' names and contact information redacted. Up to seven candidates could have been selected as semifinalists if they got votes from a majority of the board. Sims had votes from five board members, and Latten-Clark and Fulmore had votes from all seven.
Notably, the list of semifinalists did not include Ashonta Wyatt, an education consultant and former principal of Edgar P. Harney Spirit of Excellence Academy. In recent weeks, some community members have floated her name for superintendent. Wyatt received votes from two board members.
Orleans Parish School Board president Katie Baudouin said in a statement that each semifinalist brings “a rich blend of experience and a profound dedication to education.”
At a special board meeting Tuesday, the board will conduct the first round interviews and select finalists.
Members of the public can hear directly from the candidates at a district town hall at 6 p.m. April 1 at Walter L. Cohen High School. There, attendees will be split among several classrooms, and candidates will rotate through for 30 minute sessions to introduce themselves and answer questions.
The board will conduct a final round of interviews and elect the superintendent on April 2. The board plans to vote on a contract for the next superintendent at the April 17 board meeting.
"This marks a crucial turning point for NOLA Public Schools,” Baudouin said, “and we are confident that this selection process will guide us to a leader who will inspire and advance our district."
None of the candidates responded to interview requests.
Fateama Fulmore
Fulmore was hired in 2022 as deputy superintendent under Williams. A Brooklyn, New York native, Fulmore began her education career in North Carolina as a career and technical education teacher where she also held stints as a middle and high school assistant principal, and high school principal.
Before moving to New Orleans, Fulmore was chief of accountability and school Improvement for Omaha Public Schools, the largest school district in Nebraska. She was also a district administrator in Philadelphia, which has a mix of traditional and charter public schools.
As deputy superintendent, Fulmore’s responsibilities included oversight of daily operations, as well as assisting with development of the five-year strategic plan and managing enrollment. Since taking over as interim superintendent, Fulmore was tasked with helping the district remedy a nearly $50 million financial crisis that came to light in October. On Thursday, the school board approved her plan to pull from district savings and operations budget surplus to ensure schools won’t take a hit in payments this year.
Fulmore holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Appalachian State University, a master’s degree in school administration from Gardner-Webb University, an educational specialist degree in educational leadership from Grand Canyon University and a doctorate degree in leadership of PK-12 schools and school districts from Gwynedd Mercy University.
Sharon Latten-Clark
Latten-Clark, a New Orleans native who graduated from Xavier College Prep, got her start in education as a para-educator and English teacher in Houston. She later taught English at Fredrick Douglass High School in New Orleans and was an assistant principal in Phoenix before returning to New Orleans in 2001 to lead Sophie B. Wright, then a struggling middle school.
In her nearly quarter century as head of school, Latten-Clark shepherded Sophie B. Wright —which later added a high school program — through its transition into a charter school just before Hurricane Katrina struck while part of the Recovery School District.
Sophie B. Wright Institute in Excellence earned a “B” letter grade from the state for the 2023-24 school year.
Last year, Latten-Clark began a four-year term as a member of the state board of education, on which she chairs the state’s attendance task force.
She holds a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree from Xavier University and a doctorate degree in educational leadership from University of New Orleans.
Dedrick Sims
Sims, the only semifinalist candidate from out of town, heads the Denver-based Sims-Fayola Foundation, a nonprofit that offers professional training for educators on single-gender learning, youth programs and other initiatives that aim to improve outcomes for young men of color.
Sims started his career in education as a high school substitute teacher and has held classroom roles including high school biology and alternative school teacher. He has been principal of traditional and charter schools, according to a biography on his foundation’s website.
Sims founded the Sims-Fayola International Academy-Denver, an all-boys charter school that was open from 2012-15, according to Chalkbeat Colorado, as well as Southeast Arkansas Preparatory High School, a now-shuttered open enrollment charter school in Pines Bluff, Arkansas, according to an application submitted to the Arkansas State Department of Education in 2018.
Sims said on that application he was principal of Miller McCoy Academy of Mathematics and Science in New Orleans, an all-boys charter school that was open from 2008-15. According to his LinkedIn profile, Sims was principal of KIPP: McDonogh 15 Middle School for a year in 2009.
Sims holds a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of Arkansas Pine Bluff and master's and doctoral degrees in Instructional Design and Development from the University of South Alabama.
