Austin ISD names chief officer of schools Anthony Mays as interim superintendent
The Austin school board selected the district's chief officer of schools Anthony Mays to be the next interim superintendent early Tuesday.
Mays currently leads the district's school leadership team, oversees the associate superintendents of secondary and elementary schools and the assistant superintendent for student support services, according to the district's website. He has been the chief officer of schools since October 2020.
After an hourslong private discussion, seven trustees voted in favor of appointing Mays as the new interim superintendent, with trustees Arati Singh and Lynn Boswell abstaining. Mays will be the district's first Black male interim superintendent, trustee Yasmin Wagner said during the meeting.
Superintendent Stephanie S. Elizalde will be leaving her position June 30 to become the superintendent of the Dallas school district. Mays will start July 1.
In a statement, the Austin school board said it hopes to start the search for a superintendent with informal community engagement now, and it will post a request for proposals for a search firm in January. The trustees expect to select and hire a long-term superintendent by next summer.
“There is much to celebrate in our schools and there is much possibility and promise we have not yet achieved in our schools,” the board said. “As we begin collaboratively working with Dr. Mays and look ahead to the search for a new Superintendent, we ask you to continue to work with us to cocreate a district whose vision meets our reality consistent with our strategic plan, mission and values.”
Mays, who previously served as senior director of the schools division for the Harris County Department of Education, has worked in public education for more than 20 years. He previously worked as principal at Emmett J. Conrad High School and Sam Tasby Middle School in the Dallas school district.
Mays has a bachelor's degree in biology from Huston-Tillotson University, a master's degree in education from Texas State University and a doctorate in education from Tarleton State University. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of Houston-Downtown and University of Houston-Lone Star College Kingwood, according to the Austin district’s website.
"I got to Austin with very little college knowledge, and now I sit before you as the interim superintendent, first black male in Austin ISD, and so I'm thankful," Mays said at the meeting after he was selected. "I look forward to supporting academic excellence and an excellent work environment for faculty and staff here in the ’22-’23 school year."
More than 80 people spoke in-person and virtually during the board meeting, with many expressing their support for Mays. Gregory Harrington, president of the Austin alumni chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha, a historically African American fraternity, encouraged the board to select Mays, who he said is also a member of the fraternity.
“When I talk about having somebody who's qualified and talented, I have nobody else but Dr. Anthony Mays,” Harrington said during the meeting. “I want to fully endorse him as that leader because he is simply in the seat doing a great job right now with such a huge learning loss due to the pandemic.”
Trustee Kevin Foster said Mays’ application mentioned the necessity to approach the superintendent role in a collaborative manner and his primary responsibility to address teacher and staff morale and rebuild relationships with all team members.
“I am happy to support Dr. Mays, and I expect the continued attention to instructional, programmatic and school level improvement along with a renewed vigorous focus on collaborative work, collaborative decision making and rebuilding of relationships,” Foster said before the vote.
Trustee Arati Singh said she abstained because she wanted to “see how all of this plays out,” and not because she doesn’t believe Mays can do the job. She said she hopes and believes Mays will be open to honest conversations about “very real challenges” in the district.
“I am very hopeful, especially because Dr. Mays brings something unique,” Singh said. “He is a Huston-Tillotson grad, which I really appreciate. He's an AISD dad, a former principal and he is someone who I believe truly believes every child can learn at high levels, and that is extremely important to all of us.”
Candidates discussed in private
Others spoke in favor of David Kauffman, a former principal and executive director of multilingual education in the Austin school district. Kauffman posted publicly on social media on Friday that he was applying for the job.
The trustees did not mention the names of any applicants or finalists for the position, although multiple people asked the board to conduct a transparent process. The board reviewed all applications for the position and interviewed one candidate, according to a statement.
Board President Geronimo Rodriguez said the board had previously discussed the candidates in executive session during a meeting Thursday, which he said is allowed under the Texas Open Meetings Act.
“We want to assure the public that this is not about secrecy, but about respecting a process to protect individuals who may apply and expect some level of confidentiality for themselves, their families, their reputation and their career,” Rodriguez said. “The same is true for all levels in the district as we work to maintain the privacy of who applies for any position until and when (we’re) ready to make an appointment."
Ken Zarifis, president of Education Austin, the Austin school district's employee union, said the district is facing many challenges, and he hopes Mays sees his appointment as an opportunity to do things differently with the community and district employees and to build trust, belief and faith within the district.
“I'd like to see Dr. Mays be successful,” Zarifis told the American-Statesman. “I'd like for our district to be successful, and that includes students and workers. I'm happy for him, but I am also very realistic about the challenges in front of us. It’s going to take people working together to resolve those problems and to see better outcomes for students and the workers of AISD.”
More: Why does Austin ISD pay so much into the state's school recapture program?
Elizalde's legacy
Elizalde is leaving her role after nearly two years, entirely during the COVID-19 pandemic. She required masks on campuses, defying Gov. Greg Abbott's prohibition on mask mandates in schools, and deflected Republican-led probes into the district over books and LGBTQ issues, which have become national flashpoints in public schools.
Elizalde worked to improve equity among schools and in planning the next school bond package. She has also reined in spending, including by cutting more than 600 positions, mostly in the central office, in an effort to balance the budget.
“I know we have the right staff in Austin ISD to continue moving our work forward. The Leadership Team is well positioned to realize the district’s vision and mission, to prepare every student with the knowledge and skills to thrive in college, career, and life,” Elizalde said in a statement in May.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Austin ISD names Anthony Mays as interim superintendent
