Saline Board of Education Chooses 5 Candidates for Superintendent

The Saline Area Schools Board of Education has narrowed the field to five in its search for the district's next superintendent.

The finalists are:

• Dr. William J.: Dr. William J. Patterson, Assistant Superintendent of Secondary Curriculum, Jackson Public Schools. He will be interviewed at 5:30 p.m., April 26.
• Tyrone Weeks, Director of State and Federal Programs, Farmington Public Schools. He will be interviewed at 7 p.m., April 26.
• Dr. Stephen Laatsch, Interim Superintendent of Saline Area Schools. He will be interviewed at 5:30 p.m., April 28.
• Edward Manuszak, Superintendent, Dundee Community Schools. He will be interviewed at 7 p.m., April 28.
• Dr. Amy Kruppe, Superintendent, Hazel Park Schools. She will be interviewed at 5:30 p.m., April 29.

All interviews will be held by the Board of Education in the board room at Liberty School, 7265 N. Ann Arbor St. The interviews are open to the public, but seating is limited. A Zoom link will be available for people who wish to watch the interview but do not want to attend in-person.

The district is searching for a permanent replacement for Scot Graden, who retired in January. Laatsch, the longtime assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, has been the interim superintendent since Graden's retirement.

According to a press release issued by the board, there were 18 applicants for the position. Applicants included superintendents, central office administrators, principals and people with non-traditional backgrounds. Most of the applicants were from Michigan, but the position drew interest from candidates in Colorado, Georgia, New Mexico, New York and Pennsylvania.

The board reviewed applicants at a special meeting Thursday evening. The review was held in closed session.

“We were pleased with the breadth of the applicant pool and interest demonstrated in Saline Area Schools. We believe there are quality candidates that will meet our needs and expectations. We look forward to finding out more about the candidates’ leadership abilities, and what each candidate has to offer our students, staff and community
candidate has to offer our students, staff and community," said Board of Education President Jennifer Steben.

Steben encouraged people to attend or view the interviews. The district hopes to have the permanent superintendent in place by July 1, 2021.

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