st. paul

The St. Paul school board chose Valeria Silva to be the district's next superintendent Monday night, ending a five-month search that focused heavily on local candidates. Silva now must negotiate a contract with the school board.

"I'm excited, Valeria will be a great leader for our district," Board Member Jean O'Connell said of Silva's unanimous, first-ballot selection.

Silva is second-in-command of the district as its chief academic officer. She beat out two other finalists -- Charles Hopson, deputy superintendent of the Portland (Ore.) School District, and Deborah Henton, superintendent of the North Branch School District.

Silva will lead the state's second-largest school district, which has 38,000 students, 6,000 employees and annual budget of over $600 million.

Silva, 48, came to the United States from Chile 24 years ago speaking little English. Indeed, Silva's passionate work in helping English language learners has drawn national attention, propelling her career.

Several board members said Silva's 20-year tenure in the St. Paul district means she will be able to address the district's problems quickly.

"We can just get started right away," said Elona Street-Stewart, vice chairwoman of the board. "Everybody knows what the expectations are for the next superintendent."

Board Member Anne Carroll said Silva had the most depth, "and she's fully prepared to lead the district where it needs to go."

Although St. Paul is widely regarded as an urban school district that operates well, it faces a phalanx of acute problems. St. Paul's schools are confronting a steep budget shortfall, indicating the district will need to trim some $27 million from its next budget cycle. Earlier this year the district approved a $25 million package of budget cuts for the current school year.

During a telephone conference Monday night Silva said, "There are so many different ways of reducing the budget, and none of them are good."

The district also needs to close a large achievement gap between its white students and its students of color. St. Paul has set a goal of raising test scores by 10 percentage points this year for all demographic groups, which would be an unprecedented achievement.

Silva also said she plans to lead the "healing" in the district, a need many say that resulted from the lack of inclusion by the administration of former school's Chief Meria Carstarphen. "I need to do a lot of listening and learning," Silva said.

Board members welcomed that sentiment. "It's going to be exciting to have a superintendent who actually looks for your feedback," said Board Member Keith Hardy.

It is not yet clear how much Silva will be paid, but Carstarphen, who resigned in June, had been earning an annual salary of $195,000. Board officials said it could take a couple of months to get Silva under contract and complete her transition into office. Silva said she currently earns about $135,000.

By law, the district may not give a contract for longer than three years, but observers in and outside the district say St. Paul needs its next superintendent to stay perhaps twice that long for the sake of continuity.

Silva's pact with the school board also could require her to move into St. Paul from her home in Woodbury, as other superintendents have been required to do. Silva said she is looking forward to such a move. Both her children recently graduated from Johnson High School in St. Paul.

The appointment will end the term of interim schools chief Suzanne Kelly, who had been chief of staff for Carstarphen. Kelly will stay on with the district, reverting to her former role.

Gregory A. Patterson • 612-673-7287