Event to be Held July 17 at 5:30 p.m. at Louisiana Schools for the Deaf and Visually Impaired
BATON ROUGE, La. - Finalists in the search for the next superintendent of the Louisiana Special School District (SSD) will present their visions for the system during a public town hall event on Wednesday, July 17, at 5:30 p.m. on the joint campus of the Louisiana School for the Deaf and the Louisiana School for the Visually Impaired, located at 2888 Brightside Lane. A live video stream of the event will be available.
"The SSD has embraced a new vision to be a national leader in addressing the needs of some of our most vulnerable learners," said State Superintendent John White. "Louisiana seeks a superintendent who has extensive experience in the education of students with low incidence needs and who has expertise in managing systemic change. We are pleased to introduce the community to the finalists for this role, and we look forward to learning more about each of them and to selecting the right person to lead the SSD forward."
The finalists include:
- Janet Armelin Harris, Director of Human Resources for the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board. Harris's career in education, including in special education, has spanned 27 years.In her current role, which she has held since 2016, Harris helps manage personnel matters for a school district with more than 6,500 employees. Previously, Harris served as a school administrator, an educational diagnostician, and special education teacher. She also worked as an adjunct instructor, teaching college-level courses focused on educating students with disabilities. She holds a bachelor's degree in accounting, a master's degree in special education, and a Ph.D. in special education with an emphasis in educational leadership.
- Ernest E. Garrett III, former Executive Director and CEO of Deaf Empowerment Awareness Foundation, Inc. Garrett is a current doctoral candidate in the final stages of his dissertation, which examines hiring and retaining persons with disabilities for leadership positions, and most recently served as the executive director and CEO of Deaf Empowerment Foundation, Inc., in Webster Groves, Mo. Previously, he served as the first deaf superintendent of the Missouri School for the Deaf, the executive director of the Missouri Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, and worked as a social worker in both school and clinical settings. He holds bachelor's degrees in history and technical writing, and master's degrees in social work, administration and management.
- Jamie B. Wong, Special Education Director for the Louisiana Department of Education. Wong has 12 years of experience working in special education at the local, state and national levels. Wong, a current member of the state education department's executive staff, has overseen special education services across Louisiana since 2015 and has worked alongside leaders at the SSD to redefine expectations and supports for students enrolled in its schools and programs. Prior to returning to her home state, Wong worked in Washington, D.C., where she developed education policies focused on special education, taught special education to students with low incidence disabilities, and led a team devoted to the early identification of disabilities. Wong holds a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in educational leadership and administration. She also earned a special education teaching certification through The New Teacher Project.
In addition to participating in the public town hall event, finalists will be interviewed by leaders from the Louisiana Department of Education. The Department intends to name the next SSD superintendent by the start of August.
The SSD was established by the Louisiana State Legislature to provide education to students housed in state or privatized facilities and hospitals. The SSD oversees Louisiana's special schools: the Louisiana School for the Deaf and the Louisiana School for the Visually Impaired. It also manages educational programs for eligible students enrolled in the Office of Youth Development, Office of Behavioral Health, Office of Developmental Disabilities, Department of Public Safety and Corrections and privatized facilities across the state.
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