When will Atlanta's school board pick a new superintendent?

ATLANTA - The Atlanta Board of Education has extended the deadline for people to apply to become the next superintendent to May 17. 

The original deadline was in January. 

Erika Mitchell, the chair of the board, told FOX 5's Rob DiRienzo in an exclusive TV interview Thursday that changes to the board and a breach of confidential information have slowed the process down.  

"Conversations that were happening around the candidates themselves, community members, and then board members, just to be honest," Mitchell said. 

She didn't say who disclosed what to whom, but she doesn't see the delay as a bad thing.  

"You say, ‘Why it’s taking so long?’ Here’s my question, ‘Why rush it?’" Mitchell said.  

How long will it take to find a new APS superintendent?

Atlanta Public Schools' search for a new superintendent could go into the next school year. 

However, she is confident they will have a final pick sometime in the Fall. 

"We want to be able to really thoroughly look at these candidates and not just go down a list," she said. "We look at every piece of information that we receive." 

Before the start of this school year, the board told the prior superintendent, Dr. Lisa Herring that her services were no longer needed. 

Interim superintendent Danielle Battle has agreed to stay in the role until December. 

"I can’t speak with the turnover, I can only speak to where we are right now," Mitchell said. "I think we’re in a good place." 

Mitchell says an out-of-state firm is helping them recruit, and the board will then work with a panel of community members to pick the successor. 

What is APS looking for in a new superintendent? 

The right fit will have to manage all of the moving parts that make up the massive A.P.S. system - and its $1.7 billion budget. 

"As a whole, we’re looking for a superintendent that’s focused on literacy and equity," she said. " A chief communicator that knows our city and moving pieces because we have a lot going on in Atlanta." 

She says they’ve already received dozens of applications, but the national pool of qualified people is relatively small. 

Seth Coleman, a spokesperson for Atlanta Public Schools, said in an emailed statement Thursday that the board has taken measures to protect the confidentiality of the applicants moving forward. 

"The confidential slate includes past candidates as well as new candidates," Coleman said. "It has no identifying factors and is presented without the person’s name, current district or any other factors that would reveal the candidate’s identity." 

Coleman told new applicants to apply by May 17 at this link.  

"The Board remains confident that it will complete the process by this Fall," Coleman wrote.