Starr Named New MCPS Superintendent

The Montgomery County Board of Education has selected Dr. Joshua P. Starr as its candidate for superintendent of schools for the Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), pending final negotiations for employment and approval by the state superintendent of schools. Starr is currently the superintendent of the Stamford (Conn.) Public School system where he has served for the past six years.

“The contexts of Stamford and Montgomery County are very similar, and I look forward to working with the Board, staff and community to build on the great strengths of MCPS,” said Starr. “Montgomery County has shown the nation that it is possible to raise academic standards and enable all children to achieve them. By engendering a culture that rests in the belief that all children have unlimited potential, ensuring a systematic focus on great instruction, and establishing processes and structures that support adult learning and development, MCPS has changed the conversation of what is possible in urban public education.”

“Dr. Starr comes to Montgomery County with impressive credentials and skill sets to lead MCPS in times of incredible challenges and opportunities. He comes to us with a deep commitment to openness and is eager to work collaboratively in the best interest of all students,” said Board President Christopher Barclay. “The Board looks forward with great excitement to working with Dr. Starr in building upon the impressive successes that MCPS has garnered over the past 12 years under the leadership of Dr. Jerry D. Weast.”

Starr and his wife, Emma, have three children. He is scheduled to begin work on July 1.