Birmingham City Schools board selects new superintendent

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) – The Birmingham Board of Education has offered Lisa Herring the position of the school system’s superintendent after a contentious search.

News outlets report that the board voted 6-3 to hire Herring effective immediately Tuesday, and by that same margin voted to place interim Superintendent Larry Contri on paid leave.

Herring is the chief academic officer of Jefferson County Public Schools in Kentucky and currently under consideration for its interim superintendent. It’s unclear whether Herring has accepted the Birmingham job.

The search drew criticism from some board members after no internal candidates or Alabama residents were selected as initial finalists.

One finalist withdrew April 16 citing “the political climate and controversy.”

The Birmingham American Federation of Teachers filed a lawsuit over expenses for the search on April 21.

Copyright 2017 The Associated Press.