Two St. Louis-area school districts are gearing up for more leadership changes for the next school year.
The Francis Howell School District has announced career educator and school administrator Mike Dominguez will be the new superintendent after its current one, Kenneth Roumpos, prepares to take the top job at the Kirkwood School District.
Dominguez is currently the superintendent for Garden City Public Schools in neighboring Kansas, the ninth-largest school district in the state, and serves a predominantly minority student population, according to a statement from the district.
Earlier, he served as superintendent for Stratford Independent School District in Texas. He was also a teacher and wrestling coach in schools in the state.
“I am thrilled to be joining the Francis Howell community and look forward to meeting with students, staff, families, and residents to hear their ideas and hopes for the future of the District,” Dominguez said in a statement. “Together, we will continue the District’s legacy of academic excellence and chart new paths for student learning so that our graduates are ready for the future.”
The school board said it conducted a national search led by School Exec Connect, a consulting agency, after Roumpos announced his intent to leave the district at the end of the school year.
Francis Howell has recently been the focus of various culture war battles. The district rolled out a new version of Black history and literature curricula this fall after the board voted to revise them last spring.
In August, the board voted to prohibit teachers from discussing gender identity in the classroom.
The school board also voted to ban books that have references to drugs, alcohol or sexual conduct. They also implemented a policy that allows parents to challenge any books taught in the district.
The Francis Howell school board has two seats up for election on April 8. Voters can hear from the four candidates during a Tuesday night forum moderated by student journalists from Francis Howell Central and Francis Howell high schools.
Ferguson-Florissant ends contract with former superintendent
The Ferguson-Florissant School District said it has officially dismissed former Superintendent Joe Davis after the school board placed him on administrative leave pending an investigation last year.
The investigation was prompted by two principals who filed a lawsuit against the district alleging Davis had sexually harassed them.
The FFSD school board said in a statement it could not substantiate whether Davis had engaged in illegal conduct but decided that he should not return to the district.
“The board believes that new leadership for the Ferguson-Florissant School District at this time is in the best interests of the students, staff and community,” the district said in a statement.
The district said it will pay out the remainder of Davis’ contract because it is not terminating him for cause. The contract is estimated to be for thousands of dollars — Davis was paid a salary of $260,000 during the 2023-24 school year, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The district is grappling with a projected budget shortfall of $7.7 million for the upcoming school year, which the board said is partly caused by increased hiring and low student enrollment.
The board said it’s actively working to reduce spending, has implemented a hiring freeze and is cutting positions across the district.
