IPS chief academics officer a finalist for Cleveland schools CEO

The chief academics officer for Indianapolis Public Schools is one of two finalists in the search for the next chief executive officer of the Cleveland Metropolitan School District.

Warren Morgan, who joined IPS in May 2020, oversees curriculum and instruction for the district as a member of the executive leadership team. He previously worked in Cleveland as an academic superintendent supervising the city’s turnaround schools.

“There’s just an amazing opportunity to return home and to be able to connect and work with so many great people that have invested in me, and we’ve invested in each other,” Morgan said in a video introduction on the Cleveland school district’s website.

Rocky Torres, the assistant superintendent of student support services for Seattle Public Schools, is the other finalist. Morgan did not immediately return a request for comment.

Morgan was also a finalist in the superintendent search for New Haven Public Schools in Connecticut last month. The district finalized the selection of its new superintendent, Madeline Negrón, this week.

The Cleveland school district, with about 36,000 students, plans to have a new superintendent announced by this month, according to a timeline on its website.

Morgan has overseen academics for IPS as it recovers from pandemic learning loss — the district’s gain in statewide ILEARN testing scores for 2022 has brought students back roughly to pre-pandemic proficiency levels.

Before landing in Indianapolis, Morgan served as a high school principal in Chicago Public Schools and as the executive director for Teach for America in St. Louis. He also was selected as a White House Fellow and previously taught science in St. Louis through TFA.

Chalkbeat is a not-for-profit news site covering educational change in public schools.