Tom Shelton
Lexington, KY – Tom Shelton has announced he will resign from the top spot of at Fayette County Public Schools (FCPS) at year’s end to take a new job.
According to a release from the school system, Shelton, who’s held the job since 2011, has accepted a job running the Kentucky Association of School Superintendents. According to FCPS, Shelton interviewed for the job yesterday and accepted the position after a unanimous vote by its board.
“Although I did not enter into this decision lightly, I am very excited by the opportunity to work with other superintendents and impact educational improvement on a broader scale,” Shelton stated in a release. “In order for Kentucky to continue its progress in education, we must advocate at the state level for better funding of our classrooms throughout Kentucky.”
Fayette County Board of Education Chairman John Price expressed confidence that the district would rally to find a new leader, according to the release.
“I want to assure everyone that our school board will work together to ensure that we continue to make progress and move forward to raise achievement for every student. This will not stop or slow down our commitment,” Price said in the release.
Price said the school board would have to meet to begin taking steps to find the next superintendent to lead Fayette County. He hoped that the board would move swiftly to ensure a strong pool of candidates. The board's next scheduled meeting is a planning meeting on Monday at 5:30 p.m.
Under Kentucky statute, a superintendent screening committee comprised of two teachers, one board of education member, one principal, one parent and one classified employee will be formed to assist the school board in the selection of the next Fayette schools chief, according to FCPS.
Shelton came to Fayette County from Daviess County to replace Stu Silberman who left to head up the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence. Conicidentaly, Shelton took the top job in Daviess to replace Silberman upon his appointment to the Fayette County post.