During their regular March 20 meeting, members of the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board voted to offer the position of superintendent of the East Baton Rouge School System (EBRPSS) to John Dilworth, current superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools in Alabama.  Dilworth is scheduled to replace current EBRPSS Superintendent Charlotte Placide, who will retire as of June 30, 2009.   School Board President Jerry Arbour called Mr. Dilworth shortly after the vote to congratulate him on his selection.

Dilworth has been superintendent of Montgomery Public Schools for the past two years.  The K-12 district has enrollment of 31,500, staff of 5,150 and an annual budget of $350 million.

Previously, Dilworth was vice president of University Affairs at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches and chief operating officer of the Caddo Parish Public Schools in Shreveport, both in Louisiana. Dilworth holds a master’s degree in Education Administration and a Bachelor of Science degree in Health and Physical Education from Northwestern State University. A winner of the Northwestern University Hall of Distinguished Educators 2008 and the Northwestern Athletic Hall of Fame awards and a graduate of the Broad Academy, he serves on the local Chamber of Commerce’s Board Committee of 100 and is a member of the Montgomery Area YMCA Board, among others.

A few weeks ago, the School Board narrowed its semi-final candidate choices to three:  Dilworth; Dr. Bonita Coleman-Potter, deputy superintendent of Instruction for the Jackson County School District in Mississippi; and Dr. John Covington, superintendent of Pueblo City Schools in Colorado.  The three were interviewed by the School Board in early March after each candidate experienced an intense day of public and community meetings and interviews.  Covington withdrew his name from consideration shortly after his interview.