Rocky Torres has been selected as the next superintendent of the School District of Lancaster, the district announced Tuesday.
The SDL school board picked Torres “after a comprehensive search process that produced a significant number of diverse candidates,” the district said in a statement.
A formal vote to on his appointment is scheduled for March 7. Assuming he is confirmed, Torres will take over on July 1 from acting Superintendent Matt Pryzwara.
Torres and Pryzwara were two of the three finalists announced earlier this month, along with Stephanie Jones. Jones heads the Office of Diverse Learner Supports and Services in the Chicago public school system.
Torres is the assistant superintendent of Student Services in the Seattle, Washington, public school system. He has a bachelor’s degree from Ohio Northern University, master’s degrees from City College of New York and Bank Street College and a Ph.D. in education from Cleveland State University.
Przywara took over administration of the district following the retirement of Damaris Rau last summer. In a statement, the board called his leadership “stellar.”
SDL said its superintendent search incorporated feedback from community forums and a survey that garnered more than 1,300 responses. The consensus goal was to find an individual with proven leadership success, ability to improve student outcomes and “a strong moral compass rooted in justice and equity.”
