The Dearborn Board of Education has hired the Michigan Leadership Institute (MLI) to assist with the district’s search for a new superintendent. This page will be used to provide information and updates to our Dearborn Schools community about the search.
Superintendent job posting
Applications are now officially open for the next superintendent of Dearborn Public Schools.
The job position was posted on Feb. 20, 2026 by the Michigan Leadership Institute (MLI), the firm leading the superintendent search. See the superintendent job posting here. Applications are accepted through the MLI website.
Earlier in February, MLI held 16 meetings to solicit feedback from different stakeholder groups, including two public meetings for parents, residents, and other interested community members. More than 100 people attended a meeting to learn more about the search process and offer insight on what characteristics they felt the next superintendent should have.
Michigan Leadership Institute also offered surveys in English, Arabic, and Spanish to allow those who could not attend a meeting in person to provide input. A total of 258 people completed a survey.
Applications to be the next superintendent will be accepted until March 27 at 4 p.m.
On April 9, the Board of Education is expected to meet to review the applications and select candidates to interview. Names of those who apply will only be made public if they are selected for an interview. Initial interviews are slated for April 14 to 16 at 6 p.m. each evening.
Timeline
The Board held a special study session on Jan. 27, 2026 to work with Michigan Leadership Institute to create a timeline and work out other details about how the search would be run.
Tues., Jan. 27 – Meet with Board of Education to review timeline, gather input, establish parameters of search
Feb. 2-16 – Collect stakeholder feedback to develop candidate profile; create and finalize job posting announcement. Stakeholder engagement will include meetings with different groups. A public meeting for parents and community members will also be held. (Date and time to be determined.) Online surveys will also be provided in English, Arabic and Spanish.
Feb. 20 to March 27 – Post position, place ads including national advertising, accept applications until 4:00 p.m. on Fri., March 27
Fri. March 27 at 4 p.m. – Job posting closes. Michigan Leadership Institute will conduct initial vetting of applications to determine if they meet the posting requirements. The names of those who applied are kept private unless they are selected for interviews.
Thurs., April 9 at 6 p.m. – During a closed session, MLI will present information about all applicants to the Board of Education. During the public section of the meeting that follows, the Board will select which applicants they would like to interview as well as what questions to include during the first round of interviews.
April 14-16 at 6 p.m. – The Board conducts first round interviews in person. Up to two 90-minute interviews will be held each evening.
Sat., April 18 at 11 a.m. – The Board of Education selects finalists.
April 22 and 23 – MLI will lead finalist Q & As with stakeholder groups. Finalists will also take district tours and participate in meet and greets.
Fri., April 24 at 6 p.m. – The Board conducts finalist interviews in person.
Mon., May 4 at 6 p.m. – Selection of superintendent
TBD – Board approves contract with new superintendent
July 1, 2026– New superintendent’s first official workday
Community input
Community members who wanted to offer input on what characteristics the next superintendent of Dearborn Public Schools had two ways to share their thoughts in February. Two public community meetings were held on Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, as well as separate meetings for different employee and stakeholder groups. An online survey was available in English, Spanish and Arabic until Feb. 16.
The input from the meetings and surveys was used to help write the job posting used to recruit candidates for the position.
