Durham School Board Names Dr. Pascal Mubenga New Superintendent
Durham, NC — Dr. Pascal Mubenga has been named new superintendent the Durham Board of Education announced after a short closed-door session Monday (Oct. 16th). The new leader will manage the system of 53 schools and 33,000 students, ABC11.com reports.
“I am grateful for the opportunity afforded to me as the Superintendent of Durham Public Schools,” Mubenga said Monday. “I look forward to working with the Board of Education members as we strive to make Durham Public Schools the best choice for parents and students. I believe high expectations coupled with support, accountability, and celebrations will yield desirable outcomes for all stakeholders.”
In April, Durham Public Schools Superintendent Bert L’Homme shocked the school board when he announced his upcoming retirement. For five months, the Durham Board of Education has been discussing his successor and looking for the perfect replacement.
Mubenga has been superintendent of Franklin County Schools since August 2015. He has worked in public education for more than 20 years and has previously worked as a district transformation coach, school transformation team lead and school transformation coach with the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction. Prior to that, he served as the principal of Jones Senior High School in Jones County, an assistant principal in Franklin County and math teacher in Johnston County.
Early in his career, he served as a math teacher at Chewning Middle School for three years.
Mubenga has a Ph.D. from Capella University and holds a Master’s Degree in secondary Education from Liberty University and a Bachelor of Science in mathematics from Shaw University.
More than 40 people applied to be the next Durham Public Schools superintendent, but that number was reduced to 10 candidates who were interviewed this summer by the Board of Education.
Previous superintendent Bert L’Homme retired, effective Oct. 1. The district has been under the leadership of an interim superintendent for the past two weeks.
“It is hard to retire when the job’s not yet done,” L’Homme said at the time. “But in a progressive community such as Durham that stands for every child without exception, I have no doubt that the next superintendent will build on those accomplishments and move DPS into a great future.”