Former Madisonian Joe Gothard has been named to be the next superintendent of St. Paul Public Schools in Minnesota.
Gothard was selected Tuesday by St. Paul School Board members by a 5-to-2 vote, and is expected to take over the state’s second-largest district this summer, subject to contract negotiations.
“I’m humbled by your belief in me,” Gothard told the board via Skype.
Most recently, Gothard was superintendent of the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District in Minnesota. Before that, he was assistant superintendent for secondary schools for MMSD. The 6-foot-6-inch Gothard was once the head football coach at La Follette High School where he would later become principal.
The job attracted 67 applicants and was narrowed down to three finalists for the top job in Minnesota’s second-largest district. The other finalists were Cheryl Logan, chief academic support officer for the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, schools, and Orlando Ramos, regional superintendent of schools in Milwaukee.
Gothard holds a bachelor’s degree in biology education, a master’s degree in education, and a doctorate in educational leadership, all from Edgewood College.
