SDL Acting Superintendent on track to receive superintendent credentials by July 1 | Local News

Addressing one of the top concerns surrounding his candidacy for superintendent of School District of Lancaster, Acting Superintendent Matt Przywara should have his superintendent qualifications complete by July.

But the board’s top choice for the role, Ricardo (Rocky) Torres, will still have significantly more degrees, achievements and qualifications.

Though the board selected Torres over Przywara as its first choice for the superintendent job in an announcement Feb. 21, staff, parents and students alike have voiced strong opposition. Some who are in favor of the board’s pick, however, cite Przywara’s current lack of superintendent credentials as a reason he shouldn’t get the job.

Przywara “couldn’t be a teacher,” said resident Andrew Marshall at a Feb. 21 school board meeting. “He couldn’t be an instructional coach. He couldn’t be a coordinator. He couldn’t be a principal but you guys want him as the superintendent.”

However, Przywara is on track to receive a commission qualification letter, which serves as an alternate form of eligibility required to serve as superintendent in Pennsylvania public and private schools, by July 1.

Przywara has met or will meet by then all of the requirements for the letter, which include: obtaining a graduate degree in business, finance or management, having “good moral character” and four years of experience in business, finance or management in a business, industry or education field.

Przywara will earn a master’s in business administration degree from West Chester University May 8, according to SDL spokesperson Adam Aurand.

He has sufficient relevant work experience, having worked 19 years in urban school districts, including more than 15 years serving SDL as its chief financial officer. During his tenure with the district, he’s also been acting superintendent twice, most recently taking the helm in July 2022 when former Superintendent Damaris Rau retired.

And, he satisfies the requirements relating to good moral character, according to Aurand. Good moral character is defined by the state Department of Education as someone without any record of misconduct, criminal charges, child abuse allegations or other disciplinary complaints.

Przywara’s application for the commission qualification letter has already been submitted and is awaiting his official transcripts, Aurand wrote in an email to LNP | LancasterOnline.

School boards’ leeway on candidates

School boards are able to accept superintendent applications from those without a letter of eligibility if they’re confident the candidate can obtain them prior to their expected start date, Aurand wrote.

“That approach particularly makes sense for a school district like SDoL, which wants to consider out-of-state candidates,” Aurand wrote. “Most out-of-state candidates will not possess a PA letter of eligibility, but meet the statutory and regulatory requirements to easily obtain one.”

According to the state Department of Education, certification qualifies an individual to lead others in developing curriculum, effective school management, district assessments, budget planning and resource technology management for school buildings.

If Przywara were to serve as superintendent, he would join a small number of Lancaster County superintendents who were hired in recent history with a commision qualification letter.

The most recent was Tom Strickler, who served as Columbia Borough School District superintendent from 2018 to 2021. Like Przywara, Strickler’s background was business-oriented.

Most Lancaster County superintendents, like SDL candidate Torres, have a doctorate degree.

Of the county’s 16 school district’s, only Hempfield Superintendent Michael Bromirski has a master’s degree as his highest level of education. The other 15 districts have superintendents who have completed a doctorate degree.

Torres, who currently serves as a special education administrator to the Seattle Public Schools, completed a Doctor of Philosophy in urban education, in addition to two education-related master’s degrees and a master of business administration. He’s also bilingual in English and Spanish.