By Kevin Norton

For Hometown News

After two days of rigorous interviews, the school board has whittled down candidates for the next school superintendent to just two.

The next superintendent will be either Brian Binggeli, 49, of Fairfax County, Va., or Brenda Blackburn, 62, of Rockledge. The next candidate will take over to serve as the top administrator of the approximately 10,000 school board employees and 75,000 students in Brevard when current superintendent Richard DiPatri retires June 30.

Each candidate was asked 22 questions during sessions that lasted up to two hours. At the end of the interviews, the board used a matrix questionnaire developed by search firm Ray and Associates, based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, to pick the top two contenders.

"We want to maintain where we are, but also to go further," said School Board chairman Robert Jordan when describing his expectations for the next leader of the school system. "We don't mind being challenged."

If chosen as the next superintendent, Mr. Binggeli promises to "hit the ground listening."

Dr. Binggeli hails from the competitive world of Washington, D.C. politics. His resume starts 25 years ago as a social studies teacher in Ohio. Afterwards, he served in Virginia as a principal, director of curriculum and instruction, and assistant superintendent in Fairfax and Spotsylvania counties since 2003 to a student population of 169,000.

Mrs. Blackburn was the only in-house candidate in the process. She studied at the master's level in North Carolina before coming to work in Brevard County schools, where she began as a dean of students and worked her way up.

Mrs. Blackburn has been an area superintendent in Brevard for the last 15 years, and a school board employee since 1978. She currently serves as the associate superintendent of curriculum and instruction.

"Occasionally, I call myself the dean of the world," she said, while describing her mediation role as area superintendent.

She cites the story of her parents, neither of whom made it past the eighth grade, as having a strong impact on her work.

"My parents were not able to negotiate the red tape of public education," Mrs. Blackburn said. "I try to think about that when dealing with parents."

Mr. Binggeli speaks often of the "nobility" of the work of educators, and the importance of data as the means of driving growth. He describes himself as a "classic extrovert," and "a voracious consumer of classroom and teaching research."

He was the only candidate to present quantitative evidence to the board, using data to support his past triumph of closing the achievement gap among disadvantaged students in Fairfax County.

Both candidates were asked for their views on the impending threat of budget cuts.

Mrs. Blackburn stressed that she didn't want children to lose a single year of the quality education they've been used to, and that she would "knock on doors" in order to find alternative sources of funding if necessary.

Mr. Binggelli said that he would ask the board to prioritize "what we value" when discussing budget cuts, and that he would also support the idea of a budget review committee made up of teachers and parents.

Both candidates were asked to come back for a meet-and-greet session on April 20 at 6 p.m. at district headquarters in Viera. The second round of interviews commenced the following day at 1 p.m. Board members said they might reach a decision as early as April 21, but no information was forthcoming as of press time Tuesday.

The search for a replacement for Mr. DiPatri received interest from 172 applicants, including candidates from Canada and Japan. Ray and Associates is conducting the search at a price of $35,000 (plus expenses) to taxpayers.

Back in December, board members had the choice to go instead with the Florida School Board Association, which only charges $7,500 for its services, to help them find a new superintendent, but chose to go with the more expensive Ray and Associates group.

It was decided that Ray and Associates had a more streamlined approach, and would help attract a larger pool of candidates.

Board member Barbara Murray didn't think that the selection of Ray and Associates "has made much of a difference," but that they were better in the sense that they offered locked-in costs and services and a developed written plan.

She explained that the tight economic climate has made it far more difficult to find Floridian superintendents who are willing to re-locate and risk their current positions.

Still, Mr. DiPatri will be a tough act for anyone to follow. He's the longest-serving superintendent in Florida, has received numerous accolades for his work, and has presided over what is arguably the best-run school district in Florida.

The price to find DiPatri was $45,000 (plus expenses) eight years ago.

Now the board must decide whether they want someone with extensive knowledge of the internal workings of the Brevard County school system, or someone with the vigor and vision to take residents in a new direction.

"We're very fond of Dr. DiPatri," Mr. Jordan said at the close of yet another interview with a wistful smile upon his face.