More than 20 people applied for Miami-Dade school superintendent. See the list
More than 20 people applied to become the new superintendent of Miami-Dade County Public Schools, the district told the Miami Herald Thursday.
The district shared only the names of the applicants with the Herald in a preliminary response to a public records request for all of their application materials.
The window to apply for the top position in the district closed Wednesday evening.
Applicants include school administrators from across the country as well as familiar faces in the school system like district Chief of Staff Jose Bueno and South Region Superintendent Rafael Villalobos.
Here’s a list of applicant names shared with the Herald:
- Samuel Bentsen
- Amanda Blatter
- Santarvis Brown
- Jose Bueno
- Taran Chun
- Jaime Cole
- Latanya Collins
- Corey Gardenhour
- Linus Guillory
- Lidice Lascano
- Ernie Lozano
- Alex Marrero
- Sylvia R. Mitchell
- Jeffery Mosley
- Desmond Moulton
- Carlos Perez
- Angel Rivera
- Christopher Ruszkowski
- Christopher Spence
- Shawn C. Thorpe
- Rafael Villalobos
Current Superintendent Jose Dotres was hired to lead the district Jan. 2022, replacing Alberto Carvalho.
Dotres’ current contract is scheduled to end Feb. 14, 2027. The board recently approved a deal with a national search firm to lead the process, with the contract not exceeding $30,000.
Despite previous rumblings that Republican State Representative Alex Rizo would vie for the job, his name did not appear among the list of applicants.
The new superintendent would inherit a district undergoing rapid change.
Enrollment at traditional public schools has been declining fast over the last two decades. The board is set to consider at next week’s meeting closure and consolidation of four schools and could close more later this year.
Meanwhile, enrollment at charter schools remains robust and more students are using taxpayer-funded vouchers to help pay for private schooling.
Still, enrollment at traditional public schools well exceeds 200,000, the budget is greater than $7 billion and the district is recognized as the county’s largest landowner and employer.
This story was originally published June 11, 2026 at 2:53 PM.