Biloxi hires new schools superintendent
BILOXI, Miss. (AP) — A longtime school system educator has been named superintendent of Biloxi's 6,300-student public school district.
The district's school board voted Thursday to hire Marcus Boudreaux, 42, at a salary of $140,000 a year, The Sun Herald reported.
Boudreaux, the principal at Biloxi High School, replaces interim superintendent Larry Drawdy, who agreed to fill the post temporarily after the resignation last May of Arthur Mcmillan. Mcmillan had held the job for eight years.
"I've spent my entire career here," Boudreaux said after the meeting. "This was the next step. I want to do everything I can to lead the Biloxi school system in the right direction."
Board members have discussed candidates for the job in a series of closed meetings since early December. State law allows public bodies to discuss personnel behind closed doors.
Boudreaux has been with the Biloxi School District for 18 years as a teacher, coach and principal and has most recently served as Biloxi High School's principal since 2015.
Boudreaux has a specialist degree, a step above a master's, in educational leadership and administration from the University of Mississippi.
"This is a dream job for me. I've spent my entire career in the district, and I intend to end my career here," Boudreaux said after Thursday's announcement. "Biloxi has a long tradition of excellence and I'm looking forward to building on that tradition by challenging our staff, students and community to even greater achievements."
As Boudreaux takes the helm, the public remains uncertain about the status of an investigation into potential fraud in the school system. The office of State Auditor Shad White has been investigating but refused to discuss an ongoing case.
Drawdy told the Sun Herald before Thursday's board meeting that nobody from the auditor's office has contacted him about the investigation since he stepped in as interim superintendent on June 15. Drawdy said he does not know if the investigation has been concluded.
Boudreaux also said in an interview after being named superintendent that he knows nothing about the investigation.