New SPS leader wants to learn district before making big moves

Grenita Lathan joins the SPS district with 30 years of education experience.

Alina Lehnert: SPS Board of Education is unanimous in support of Lathan.

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Springfield Public School’s incoming superintendent doesn’t have big plans to change things up right off the bat.

Grenita Lathan, who was announced as the successor to retiring superintendent John Jungmann on March 8, said she wants to get to know the district – students, staff, community and board – before setting and communicating her goals.

Lathan will join SPS officially on July 1 after serving as interim superintendent of the Houston Independent School District – the largest district in Texas and the seventh-largest district in the country – a post she’s has held since 2018. In Springfield, she’ll lead the largest district in Missouri with 23,500 students and 4,000 employees between 50 schools.

In her 30-year career in education, Lathan also has worked for districts in California, North Carolina and Illinois. She joined the Houston school district in 2015 after serving as superintendent of Peoria Public Schools in Illinois for five years. She holds a doctorate in workforce education and development from Southern Illinois University.

“I always wanted to be a teacher or a social worker,” Lathan said. “I chose the teaching route and it’s been very rewarding. I still consider myself a teacher in everything I do.”

Lathan said she was searching for a more permanent superintendent position when she was contacted by representatives from GR Recruiting, the executive search firm hired by the Springfield Public Schools Board of Education.

She said she was drawn to SPS because of its board and the district’s positive reputation and strategic plan.

“I was very impressed with the board and how they govern and how they work with the current superintendent,” Lathan said. “I was very impressed with the academic standing of the school district as it relates not only to the state but across the country.”

Lathan has had a run-in with a school board before. She resigned from Peoria Public Schools in 2015 amid tension with the district’s board one day before it planned to consider terminating her contract or placing her on administrative leave, according to reporting from the Peoria Journal Star.

Reports at the time indicate board members sought to change the district’s leadership following an internal investigation in 2013 of Charter Oak Primary School that found staff did not comply with state testing procedures, leading to removal of the school’s principal.

“I will not compromise my integrity or my values to stay in a job,” Lathan said, when asked about her decision to resign. “I believe in holding people accountable. At times, people will like that. At times, people will not. But I stand firm on my values and beliefs.”

SPS Board of Education President Alina Lehnert said the board was aware of Lathan’s previous resignation.

“The board and the executive consulting firm have done their due diligence and done a thorough review of all the candidates, and our board fully supports, and was in unanimous support of, Dr. Lathan,” Lehnert said.

Lathan was chosen by the board in a 7-0 vote out of 40 applicants and seven finalists. Her contracted salary will be $300,000, according to district officials.

The search firm utilized feedback from community engagement meetings and surveys conducted in the fall, Lehnert said.

“She has a very genuine spirit that draws you in, and her demonstrated superintendent leadership in both midsize and larger urban communities will be an asset to our community,” Lehnert said of Lathan. “You’ll find her to have a sincere desire to support our talented educators who care for our children. That desire to support our educators was very clear.”

Lathan said she was intrigued by the district’s strategic plan, which focuses on student success and learning support; the empowerment of effective teachers, leaders and support personnel; financial sustainability and operational efficiency; communication and engagement; and equity and diversity, according to the district’s website.

The focus on increasing equity and diversity, including the hiring of the district’s first chief equity and diversity officer, was particularly appealing to Lathan, who will be the first woman and first Black superintendent at SPS.

“I’ve always been a transformation leader, a turnaround leader, working on behalf of children coming from impoverished communities, underserved communities,” Lathan said. “The board’s focus on equity and diversity – not only as it relates to academically meeting the needs of all learners in the district, but also to make sure that the diversity of students, the diverse backgrounds students have, that we’re able to meet their needs – looking at the strategic plan, that was another thing that piqued my interest.”

Lathan said her diverse background and understanding of developing programming for diverse learners makes her the “missing piece of the puzzle” for implementing that strategic plan.

Although she isn’t coming in with plans to overhaul the district, Lathan does have ideas she hopes to work as she joins the district.

Lathan said she would like to see an expansion of the district’s International Baccalaureate program, an internationally recognized college-preparatory curriculum. At the Houston school district, she is currently in the process of certifying 14 more schools in its IB program. Several of those schools were from economically disadvantaged communities, and she would like to see a similar expansion into more communities in Springfield.

Lehnert said Lathan will work with outgoing superintendent Jungmann before she arrives in July to make the transition run smoothly.

Highlights of Jungmann’s seven years as superintendent include development of the strategic plan, completion of a facility master plan and passage of the Proposition S bond, which secured $168 million for facility improvements.

To start the process of learning the district, three virtual meetings will be held to allow community members to speak with Lathan on March 23, 25 and 31. Information on the events can be found at SPS.org.