This week, the community has an opportunity to meet the two finalists for the school superintendent job.

School Superintendent Rich Rhodes is leaving at the end of this school year.

The school board and hiring committee opened the position to applications earlier this year. They’ve narrowed down the candidates to two finalists. According to a press release from the school board, they are Patrick Mayer and Jay Thomas.

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Mayer is currently the principal of Delta High School, which is in the Delta Greely school district.

He’s also worked as the principal of Delta Cyber School and Fort Greely Elementary School.

Additionally, he’s been a principal in California and has served as an administrator in the Mat-Su school district in Southcentral Alaska.

He attended the University of Alaska, Anchorage as an undergraduate and has a Masters of Education from Eastern Washington University.

The other finalist, Jay Thomas, currently works as the Assistant Superintendent of the Bering Strait school district. Before taking that position, he worked as a principal and teacher in the same district.

He’s also taught in Akutan, in the Aleutians, in St. Mary’s School District in the Yukon-Kuskokwim delta region of Western Alaska and in Union, Oregon.

He attended Eastern Oregon University for his undergraduate years and has a Masters of Educational Leadership from the University of Alaska, Anchorage.

Whichever candidate is hired will begin as the new superintendent at the start of this coming school year.

Neither Thomas nor Mayer could be reached for comment by deadline Tuesday night.

The public is invited to the meet-and-greet reception this Friday, March 21st, at 7pm in the High School Commons. Comment cards will be available to collect community input.