CHARLESTON, W. Va. —A day after naming Chuck Heinlein state school superintendent on a temporary basis, the West Virginia Board of Education has announced a permanent replacement.
“It is my expectation that on July 1, 2014, Dr. Michael Martirano will be nominated and elected as the State Superintendent of schools,” Gayle Manchin, board president said in a release Wednesday evening.
For the past nine years, Martirano has served as the superintendent for Saint Mary’s Public Schools in Leonardtown, Maryland, and currently is the longest-serving superintendent in the state. He has served as a teacher, principal and district superintendent in Maryland and currently serves as president of the Public School Superintendent Association of Maryland.
He was selected the 2009 Superintendent of the Year in Maryland and a 2010 Innovator of the Year by the Maryland Daily Record.
“Born in the Appalachian Mountains of Western Maryland, the grandson of a coal miner, Dr. Martirano understands the need for improved student achievement in West Virginia and has demonstrated a record of success in this area,” Manchin said in the written statement. “He is an energetic and passionate leader, an excellent communicator, and possesses a unique set of skills, talents and experience that will positively impact West Virginia’s 282,000 students.”
The board is expected to officially introduce Martirano to the public during its July 9 meeting in Charleston.
The selection was made during Tuesday’s interview process, but Martirano requested it not be made public until he could announce his resignation in person to the St. Mary’s County Board of Education during a meeting, which was held at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday, roughly one hour before the release was sent out.
Current State Superintendent Jim Phares will retire on June 30. Heinlein will fill the position until Martirano can take over.
As previously reported, according to state law, it is illegal for to operate without a superintendent or to operate with an interim superintendent.