17-05-2025
Richland 1 announces superintendent candidates. Here are the frontrunners
Richland School District 1 announced finalists for its next superintendent.
BWP & Associates, the firm hired by the school board to conduct the search, received 42 applications for the position from candidates in 12 states, according to a news release. Seven were selected for interviews, which took place Thursday and Friday. After deliberation, the board chose three finalists.
'The Board was fortunate that so many highly qualified applicants want to take on the role of superintendent in Richland One. We could not be more excited about the three finalists, and we look forward to welcoming them to our district next week,' board chair Robert Lominack said in a news release.
The candidates are:
▪ Kelly S. Guempel, deputy superintendent, Spotsylvania County Public Schools, Fredericksburg, Virginia
▪ Dr. Kendra V. Johnson, associate superintendent, Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Annapolis, Maryland
▪ Dr. Todd Anthony Walker, chief curriculum and instruction officer, Columbus City Schools, Columbus, Ohio
Guempel has 19 years of administrative experience across Virginia public schools, as an interim superintendent, principal and assistant principal, according to his resume. He had previously been a physical education teacher.
Johnson has 11 years of experience in Maryland and New Jersey public schools, as a superintendent, associate superintendent and chief academic officer, according to her resume. She has also done education consulting work.
Walker has 25 years of leadership experience in Ohio schools serving pre-K through high school as a campus director and principal. He also previously taught on the high school and college level.
The finalists will visit the district Monday. Students, staff, parents and community members have an opportunity to meet the superintendent finalists on Monday, May 19, from 5:30-6:30 p.m. at the Heyward Career and Technology Center, located at 3560 Lynhaven Drive in Columbia.
Richland 1 decided to part ways with current Superintendent Craig Witherspoon last fall.
The district school board voted unanimously on a mutual separation agreement in November following school board elections. His last day is June 30. As part of the agreement, he will receive a full year's pay — his last contract extension raised his salary to $258,121 — plus accrued compensation for annual leave and six months of health insurance coverage.
The new leader will enter a district that has faced scrutiny from community members and state officials for some time, particularly in the last 18 months.
Richland 1 was placed on 'fiscal watch' by the state Department of Education after a state-ordered audit revealed faults with the district's procurement card policy in late 2022. That's the least severe financial rating issued by the state Education Department.
In October 2023, Witherspoon and the district administration came under fire after 11 teachers were abruptly reassigned nine weeks into the school year. Richland 1 officials were adamant that such transfers were 'not uncommon,' and were made to maintain ideal student-teacher ratios in each district school. The reassignments were condemned by several Richland County legislators.
The district's efforts to build an early learning center in Lower Richland have been heavily criticized as well. Critics claim the district didn't get the proper permits before beginning construction on the $31 million project.
The state Department of Education refused to issue a permit for the center in December 2023 because the building was intended to serve children as young as infants. The age range meant the building could not be considered a school, the Education Department said. The district kept building anyway.
Richland County officials also said the district did not obtain the proper permits before beginning construction.
On Jan. 19, 2024, the district announced that it would stop construction. The controversy led to an investigation by the state Inspector General, which condemned the district's work on the center and its procurement practices. Richland 1 had broken state law and wasted taxpayer money, the Inspector General said. Weeks after the July report, state education Superintendent Ellen Weaver placed Richland 1 on 'fiscal caution,' the second most severe level of concern by her department.
The district was required to submit a recovery plan. But the state Education Department rejected the plan and ordered another audit. More than six months later, the audit's current status is unclear.
In March, the new school board decided to terminate the early learning center project. On Tuesday, it voted to demolish the partially-built structure on Caughman Road.
