LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Jefferson County Public School Superintendent Dr. Marty Pollio is deciding what's next for him and the district, once he retires next summer.

Pollio announced last week that he will retire July 1, 2025, after eight years as superintendent. The 53-year-old said his retirement has been in the works for awhile, signing a three-year extension in 2022.

Pollio said he has been in public education and the Kentucky Teacher Retirement System for 30 years, and 28 of those years were spent in JCPS. At least 18 of those years, he spent as a principal or as superintendent. He said retiring is emotional and difficult for him because of how much the people in the district mean to him.

"I've said this before. I can't imagine doing this job in another city where you don't have roots, where you didn't come up through. The District, and you care so much about the kids and the community, because it is, it's a tough job. It really is very proud of the things that have happened. We've had major challenges. There are no doubts and setbacks, and so it's not an easy thing to work through, but I'm proud of what we've accomplished," Pollio said.

Choosing the next superintendent

The JCPS board will be in charge of choosing the next superintendent over the next nine months. While the board chairman says there will be a nationwide search, Dr. Pollio believes there are some options within the district.

"I think we have some opportunities internally that I think are candidates that would be very strong for the position, no question about it. I'm not sure what the board will do. I will be here to assist in any part of the process. I don't think I'll be a part of the selection itself, but if there's any part of the process that's needed, I'll be there to select them," he said.

It will take time to vet candidates for the superintendent's job, but Pollio said anyone considering the job should keep three things in mind. 

Advice for the next superintendent

"I think you've got to have really thick skin. You know, I think that you better darn stay off of social media and probably the local news. Sorry guys, but you better be willing to, because I think it can really skew your decision making in today's world, if you're looking at opinions, you know, of hundreds of thousands of people out there," he said.

Pollio added, "I think the most important thing I would say about anyone who is taking this job, they better be very passionate about the work. You better truly care about this district. You better truly care about the kids of this district. Because if you're, if you do not have that passion and fire, it'll it'll beat you down pretty quickly."

Challenges of the JCPS job

Pollio admits the journey has not been an easy one with COVID-19 closing schools, staff shortages and last year's busing meltdown. 

"It's a very difficult job, and the lifespan of superintendents right now is very short," he said. 

Transportation issues have been a big problem for Pollio's tenure including the first day of school last year. He considers Aug. 9, 2023 his worst day on the job. 

He said he had invested a lot into fixing the busing issues in the district and felt they made the right moves. But it didn't work out the way he wanted. 

"I made a lot of errors in there as a leader that I learned from. And so I think the. Most challenging part about that was as the day started, a lack of real feeling like I could control the situation, because we knew pretty early on that it was going to be not a successful first day," Pollio said. 

Politics and education

Politics have also played a large part in Pollio's frustrations. He said legislators have put education under attack, which he said was compounded by the COVID pandemic. Masks and remote learning became political issues, along with DEI critical race theory and LGBTQ issues. 

He also reflected on a recent U.S. Department of Justice report, which found Black students in JCPS faced harsher discipline than their white peers. Pollio said it's challenging to navigate conflicting perspectives on discipline. 

"One of the hardest parts is balancing a community that says we’re under-disciplining while the federal government says we’re over-disciplining," he said. 

Plans for retirement

For now, Pollio said he has no plans for his retirement, but he plans to stay committed to public education. 

"I'm 53, years old. I am not ready to go down and play golf. I don't play golf. I really don't have many hobbies, which is scary to me of what I'm going to do. So I am not ready to be retired, so to speak. At this point, it is time for me to move on from this position and do something else."

Pollio said he gets emotional about the role education plays in all parts of society. 

"Without successful public schools across the state, we are going to struggle as a community, as an and as a nation when we talk about things like crime and safety. To me, the number one solution to crime and safety is education, when we talk about housing, when we talk about poverty, all of these things we talk about, health and wellness, let's be honest, the number one thing we can do with that is public education."

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