Since the resignation of Superintendent Joshua P. Starr in February, the Montgomery County Board of Education has run through the first round of candidates for the school district’s superintendent position.

Many students were misinformed after the resignation of Starr, believing that Larry Bowers, the district’s former Chief Operating Officer, would be serving as a permanent replacement. Bowers, however, has said he is not interested in holding the position past June when he plans on retiring, and is simply serving as an interim superintendent.

According to the Gazette, Hank Gmitro, president of the firm Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates, said that the school board was still talking with candidates as of Wednesday, April 29. He expects the second round of interviews to continue into the first week of May, and thinks the board will interview around six or seven total candidates.

The search firm that finds candidates originally presented the school board with about 14 potential leaders, although names will not be released until a final decision has been made.

While those involved cannot speak about the candidates in process, some who are not part of the interviews have spoken out about their decision not to run. 

Kimberly Statham, the Deputy Superintendent of School Support and Improvement, said she enjoys her current work in the district and does not plan on changing her position anytime soon, according to a statement provided to Bethesda Magazine by school system spokesman Dana Tofig.

“I appreciate that some have mentioned my name as a candidate to be the next superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools, but I have informed the Board of Education and the search firm they have hired that I am not a candidate for the position,” Statham stated.

School board member Jill Ortman-Fouse told the Gazette that the board has high expectations for the next Superintendent.

“We are being very choosy [as] we want the best match for Montgomery County,” she said.

Ortman-Fouse also revealed that many candidates feel the county superintendent position would be “the pinnacle of their career.” This opinion was shared by Starr even in his resignation speech.

“Many of you have heard me say that being superintendent of Montgomery County Schools is the best job in the country, and even today, I still feel that way,” Starr said during a news conference on Feb. 3. 

His resignation was effective on Feb. 16, according to 4NBC Washington, but will be paid through the end of his contract which expires June 30. 

A statement officiating the next MCPS Superintendent will be formally released by July 1, 2015.