Minnesota Superintendent Dr. Joe Gothard Named 2024 National Superintendent of the Year
February 15, 2024
MASA is excited to announce that Dr. Joe Gothard, Superintendent of Saint Paul Public Schools, has been selected by the American Association of School Administrators (AASA) as the 2024 National Superintendent of the Year®!
Co-sponsored by AASA, Corebridge Financial and First Student, the 2024 National Superintendent of the Year® was officially announced during AASA’s National Conference on Education, on February 15, 2024, in San Diego, California. A $10,000 college scholarship will be presented in the name of the AASA National Superintendent of the Year® to a student in the high school from which the superintendent graduated, or the school now serving the same area.
The AASA National Superintendent of the Year® program is open to all U.S. superintendents who plan to continue in the profession. The applicants are measured against the following criteria:
Leadership for learning – creativity in successfully meeting the needs of students in the school system;
Communication – strength in both personal and organizational communication;
Professionalism – constant improvement of administrative knowledge and skills, while providing professional development opportunities and motivation to others on the education team; and
Community involvement – active participation in local community activities and an understanding of regional, national and international issues.
Dr. Gothard was one of four finalists for the National Superintendent of the Year Award. To be eligible for the National Superintendent of the Year Award, candidates were first named by their state association as the State Superintendent of the Year. Dr. Gothard was selected as the 2024 Minnesota Superintendent of the Year in October 2023.
Dr. Gothard has served as Superintendent of SPPS since 2017. Prior to his time with SPPS, he was Superintendent of the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District for four years. Dr. Gothard was a dean of students, middle school principal, high school principal, and then assistant superintendent with the Madison Metropolitan School District in Madison, WI. Dr. Gothard began his career in teaching as a biology teacher at La Follette High School in Madison.
Dr. Gothard received a doctorate in Educational Leadership, a master’s degree in Educational Administration, and a bachelor’s degree in Secondary Education and Biology from Edgewood College in Madison, WI.
Congratulations, Dr. Gothard!
For more information on the AASA Superintendent of the Year Program, please visitwww.aasa.org.
MASA is a professional organization of Minnesota’s school leaders, including superintendents, assistant superintendents, directors of special education, and other central office administrators, as well as state department administrators, college, and university professors, and other educators throughout Minnesota dedicated to educational leadership for students.