JEFFERSON COUNTY, Colo. — Tracy Dorland will be the next superintendent of Jeffco Public Schools.
The Jefferson County Board of Education approved Dorland's contract in a special meeting Wednesday. She will begin her position April 19.
The board announced Dorland as the sole finalist March 25 after unanimously selecting her as their preferred candidate two days prior. She is currently deputy superintendent of Adams 12 Five Star Schools.
"Her wide range of instructional and school leadership experience, collaborative leadership style, and knowledge of the Jefferson County community will enable her to acclimate quickly as our new leader,” said Susan Harmon, board president, in the statement announcing Dorland as the sole finalist. “Tracy has a deep commitment to public education and has proven her dedication to work in the best interest of all students. We look forward to working with her to build upon our past success to best serve all of Jeffco’s students and families.”
Dorland began teaching in elementary classroom in 1999. She served as a teacher, principal, principal supervisor and central office leader in Denver Public Schools for more than 12 years prior to joining Adams 12 in 2013 as the district’s Chief Academic Officer. Dorland has been serving as deputy superintendent at Adams 12 for three in a half years.
She has a Master's Degree in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Colorado, Denver and a Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology from the University of Colorado, Boulder. Dorland and her family live in Jeffco and her two children attend Jeffco schools.
"Jeffco has a long tradition of excellence and has consistently been seen as one of the outstanding school systems in the country,” Dorland previously said when she was selected as the sole finalist. “As a longtime resident of Jeffco, I look forward to continuing the tradition of excellence and working with our schools, staff, students and our entire Jeffco community to achieve even greater success in student learning.”
In total, the search firm of Hazard, Young, Attea and Associates reviewed 43 candidates for the position, 23 of whom formally submitted applications.
The previous superintendent, Jason Glass, left for a job in Kentucky in July 2020 and four other metro-area superintendents followed. In September, Dr. Thomas Tucker resigned as superintendent of Douglas County School District, citing personal reasons. Susana Cordova surprised the Denver Public Schools community when she announced in November that she had accepted a new job in Dallas Public Schools. Sandra Smyser of the Poudre School District announced in January that she would retire. And Scott Siegfried will leave Cherry Creek Schools at the end of the semester.
DPS is conducting 10 to 12 second interviews in their search, according to Chalkbeat, and the rest of the districts are down to just a handful of finalists.
