The Atlanta Board of Education has decided to extend the search for the next superintendent of Atlanta Public Schools.

According to a press release, the decision “comes after careful consideration and reflects the Board’s commitment to leveraging the strong leadership profile developed with substantial community input.”

The press release said the board would continue to work with recruitment partner Hazard, Young, Attea & Associates to “maintain the integrity of the search process. ” 

“We bear a profound responsibility to our community, faculty, and students to identify and appoint the most suitable candidate to fulfill our obligations,” Chair Erika Mitchell said in the statement. “We have to get this right.”

The Board is committed to a deliberate, transparent, and inclusive search process aimed at finding a candidate who aligns closely with the established leadership criteria, the release said.

Danielle Battle has been serving as interim superintendent since last September after Lisa Herring’s contract was not renewed and she decided to leave early.

Herring is now a strategic advisor to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education.

Collin Kelley is the executive editor of Atlanta Intown, Georgia Voice, and the Rough Draft newsletter. He has been a journalist for nearly four decades and is also an award-winning poet and novelist.