Leaders with St. Paul Public Schools made a big decision on Thursday, as the Board of Education revealed its top candidates for the district’s next superintendent.

A task force of three school board members, parents and community representatives has been meeting this month to narrow down the search.

During a special meeting, the three finalists were revealed to be Dr. Brenda Cassellius, Dr. Rhoda Mhiripiri-Reed and Dr. Stacie Stanley.

Cassellius is currently the CEO of Fresh Energy and previously served as superintendent of Boston Public Schools. She has also served as Minnesota’s Education Commissioner and was in the leadership team in the Minneapolis district.

Mhiripiri-Reed has been the superintendent of Hopkins Public Schools since 2017.

Stanley has been superintendent of Edina Public Schools since 2021.

“The superintendent finalists all have deep educational experience and meet the values and characteristics our community identified earlier this school year,” said Saint Paul Public Schools Board Chair Halla Henderson. “The Board feels confident in these candidates’ ability to understand the diverse needs of the Saint Paul Public Schools community and their potential to make a positive and lasting impact on our school district. We’re excited for the community to get to know these finalists in the coming weeks.”

As previously reported by 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS, Joe Gothard left at the end of last school year, and John Thein is currently serving as Interim Superintendent – but doesn’t want the job full-time.

The school board will interview the final candidates from Dec. 16-18.

Finances will certainly be part of the interview process, as last year, the district had to close a more than $100 million budget shortfall, resulting in more than 100 teaching positions being cut, as well as five assistant principals, central office staff, cafeteria workers and custodians.

Whoever gets the job will also have to address a whistleblower lawsuit that was filed just last month, which states that two former St. Paul Public School officials discovered the district misused federal COVID-19 money in violation of both state and federal laws. Their lawsuit says they took those concerns to Gothard, who didn’t address the concerns.

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The new superintendent’s start date will be determined during contract discussions after winter break.

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