Upper Dublin School District announces superintendent finalist

The Upper Dublin School District has chosen a finalist for the post of superintendent of schools, officials announced Friday.

The school board of directors selected Deborah S. Wheeler from a field of 52 applicants throughout the mid-Atlantic region, the district said in a news release. The five-month search for a candidate was led by the Penn Center for Educational Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania.

Wheeler will succeed current Upper Dublin School District Superintendent Michael J. Pladus, who is retiring July 31 after filling the role for 10 years.

Wheeler, originally of Upper St. Clair, Pa., has been an educator in Connecticut for over 25 years, most recently serving as superintendent of the Litchfield School District. Wheeler is also an adjunct professor of graduate-level courses within the Quinnipiac University masters of education program.

School district officials will next arrange site visits in Wheeler's home district and in Upper Dublin. During the visit to Upper Dublin, which is slated for an undetermined date during the first week of June, Wheeler will meet with district staffers, administrators, community members and students.

School board members and the district solicitor will then work out a formal agreement with Wheeler and her representative, officials said. Board members hope to vote on a final contract during a school board meeting scheduled for June 11.