IRVING – School board trustees named a Georgia superintendent as the lone finalist to lead Irving schools Thursday night.

Dana T. Bedden

Dana T. Bedden, superintendent of the Richmond County School System in Augusta, Ga., is set to become the next superintendent, though he has not yet been officially hired.

Bedden would be the first black superintendent to lead the district. He has served in Augusta for about 2 ½ years. He would replace former Superintendent Jack Singley, who led the district for 21 years.

"The selection is the most important decision a board ever makes," school board President Jerry Christian said. "The board has approached that with this attitude. No individual or group is better positioned to know the strengths and weaknesses of the applicants."

Trustees voted 6-1 to name Bedden the lone finalist, with only trustee Nita Patrick voting against the decision.

"His résumé was impressive," said Valerie Jones, the board's vice president. "He's done a great job."

By law, the district must wait 21 days to officially hire Bedden, and it still must negotiate a contract with him. Trustees hope to have him in place by no later than July.

Several Hispanic activists complained that trustees did not look closely enough at Hispanic applicants and said they had wanted a Hispanic bilingual leader since the district's enrollment is about 69 percent Hispanic.

"I think they made a mistake," Carlos Quintanilla said. "This is another missed opportunity. They could have reached out to the Hispanic community."

But trustees said they looked at a diverse pool of candidates that included Hispanic applicants.

Christian said the demands made by political activists were discriminatory. The board was forbidden to make a decision based solely on race, he said.

Community activist Anthony Bond said that while he thought the district needed a Hispanic superintendent, the naming of a black superintendent was significant.

"This guy is a minority, and I'm happy about that," he said. "I think one of the first things he should do is increase the number of Hispanics in administration."

Trustees in Augusta met to discuss Bedden's contract Tuesday night but made no official offer. However, some board members told the Augusta Chronicle that he was given an unofficial offer.

Bedden released a statement to the Chronicle Thursday night saying that he was honored to be named the finalist in Irving but that he would not field any questions about his employment status.

"I would like to respectfully request that the media allow the process to take its course and I give the assurance that when it becomes appropriate, I will release a statement in regards to my future," he wrote.