The search for a new Birmingham School superintendent continues after a judge on Wednesday denied a request to halt the process. Interim Supt. Larry Contri filed a lawsuit when he wasn’t included in the list of finalists.
Ed Still, Contri’s attorney, said Contri applied but was excluded because some believed he would retire in June. Contri agreed to a June 2017 retirement last year as part of a lawsuit settlement. But Still said no one asked the interim superintendent about his plans.
The school board interviewed three finalists, but not without tension. A bomb threat early in the day forced a delay in the interviews. Police blocked off the street, searched the building, and soon gave the all-clear. But by around that time, another candidate had dropped out – the second to do so this week.
The board completed interviews with Garrett Brundage of Conyers, Ga.; Lisa Herring of Louisville, Ky.; and Regina Thompson of Blythewood, South Carolina. The list will be narrowed to two finalists in a meeting at 5 p.m. Friday.
All of the interviews are available for viewing online and a survey for feedback also is online.
WBHM reporter Dan Carsen contributed to this report.