School Board Appoints Superintendent Durán to Second Term

At today’s meeting, the Arlington School Board appointed Dr. Francisco Durán as superintendent for his second term, effective July 1, 2023. Dr. Durán has served as superintendent since June 1, 2020, and the new four-year contract extends through June 30, 2027.

“The School Board is delighted to appoint Dr. Francisco Durán for a second term as Arlington Public Schools’ superintendent and looks forward to continuing our work and mutual commitment to support all students for years to come,” said incoming School Board Chair Christina Diaz-Torres. “Having joined APS in the pandemic, Dr. Durán has made great strides to advance student success and well-being, support employee recruitment and retention, and drive operational excellence.”

Dr. Durán joined APS from Fairfax County Public Schools where he served nearly five years as Chief Academic and Equity Officer. He has a diverse background in education spanning 29 years, having served in various roles as a teacher, director, principal, central office administrator and superintendent. Dr. Durán was appointed to the Virginia State Board of Education in 2018 and served for four years. During that time, he played a key role in the adoption of the new Standards of Quality for Virginia.

“Following the difficult challenges of the pandemic, we persevered and grew stronger together, with a deep commitment to recover, rebuild and strengthen support for all students,” said Durán. “I am excited about the successes we have had, and I am grateful for the support I have received from the Board, our community, my leadership team, and our phenomenal school administrators, teachers, and staff. We have a long way to go to achieve excellence for, all and I believe we are on a strong path forward to support every student by name, strength, and need.”

Durán also highlighted some of the progress made, such as creating and implementing a strong academic and social-emotional learning plan to increase support, resources, interventions, and specialized services for students during and following the pandemic. His pursuit of more competitive pay and benefits helped achieve a nearly 95% retention rate at attract hundreds of new talented staff to APS.

Moving forward, the Superintendent pledged to:

• Develop and execute a new strategic plan as our roadmap for years to come;
• Keep innovation and equity at the forefront to adapt to the changing needs of students; and
• Improve how APS engages with our staff, strengthens its work with our unions, and APS continues to retain excellent teachers, high quality leaders and support staff.

Dr. Durán has a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of New Mexico, a master’s degree in educational administration from San Francisco State University, and a master’s degree and doctorate in organization and leadership from Columbia University.

His contract is extended through June 30, 2027.