BRADENTON, Fla. — The Manatee County School Board, by a 4-1 vote on Tuesday, chose Dr. Jason Wysong as the district's new superintendent.

After a nationwide search led by the Florida School Boards Association yielded dozens of candidates, it was narrowed down to 12, and then finally to just three: Scott Schneider, Doug Wager and Wysong.

Top 3 Candidates Were: 

  • Scott Schneider, current Chief of Schools for Duval County

  • Doug Wagner, current Deputy Superintendent of Operations for Manatee County

  • Jason Wysong, current Deputy Superintendent for Seminole County

“I am honored by today’s vote and excited to join the Manatee County community,” Wysong said. “Thank you to the School Board members for their thoughtful deliberation and support. I enjoyed meeting so many employees, parents, and community members during my visit last week. I look forward to working with all stakeholders to ensure that students in Manatee County are academically successful and ready for their futures.”

The new superintendent will replace Cynthia Saunders, who announced her retirement late last year. After two round of internal promotions, this was the first time the district has conducted a nationwide search for its superintendent since 2012.

“Now we know moving forward that once Superintendent Saunders retires, we have a leader, a very capable leader,” said School Board Chair Chad Choate. “We are excited to get him in and get the negotiations done to give him the reigns starting in July.”

Manatee County has had a unique set of challenges over the last 15 years. Most notably, the financial issues the district had back in 2012 that nearly led to takeover by the state.

Former school board member Charlie Kennedy said the district has come a long way since then.

“We’ve recovered financially, we’ve recovered academically really quite well over the past three superintendents," he said. "So our next superintendent coming in is really inheriting a school district that’s in much better shape."

 

Kennedy said Manatee County is also very socioeconomically and culturally diverse and the school district reflects that. He says the community is also supportive of public education and he’s hoping the new superintendent embraces that.

 

“This is an incredibly generous community that supports public eduction," he said. "They’ve done it twice in a row now by choosing to tax themselves, so this is a community that’s demonstrated its support for public eduction."