LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The new superintendent for Jefferson County Public Schools will officially assume his duties on July 1, which is Marty Pollio's last day. 

The Jefferson County Board of Education unanimously approved Brian Yearwood as the next JCPS superintendent on May 29. He has been in Louisville for the past few days, and sat down with WDRB for a chat -- and no question was off limits. 

Q: "What are your goals here for the district? You start July 1st, and what will you be doing?"

Yearwood: "No. 1 is listen and learn, listen and build trust and listen and get a true understanding of where we are. And once I have the information, I will create more solidified goals."

Q: What are some of the challenges for a district this size?

Yearwood: "It's just getting to know everyone. I'm very big on getting to know individuals, teachers, principals, leaders — getting to know the community."

Yearwood served as superintendent of Columbia Public Schools in Missouri from 2021 until the end of 2024. A separation agreement with the district showed he received a contract buyout of more than $667,000.

Q: "For your last school district, what happened in Columbia, Missouri? Why did you leave?

Yearwood: "As you know, I have a NDA (nondisclosure agreement), so I can't talk about it. One thing I can assure you, I did nothing illegal. I did nothing immoral. I did nothing unethical."

Q: "It was a huge buyout, and you left. People have been critical of that. You have received so much money, and it's so secret of what happened."

Yearwood: "Yes, and it's very unfortunate. I wish I could give more details behind it. I hope that as people get to know me, and get to see the person that I am, that they understand my No. 1 priority is the welfare and benefit of our students."

Q: "How do you build people's trust, though, because they know what happened in Columbia?"

Yearwood: "One on one, one person at a time, interactions, dialogue — let them see my passion in me and allow me to learn about them as well."

Yearwood said his experience in helping student performance is something he's proud of. He knows he has a lot of work ahead in the state's largest school district.

"Looking at our test scores, I know that's one opportunity we have, one that I will embrace, one that I will study, one that I will collaborate with my team, my teachers, so we can take that opportunity to an accomplishment level," he said.

Q: "We've had a lot of busing issues in this community. We've had busing shortages just like they do nationwide. What would you like to see with busing here?"

Yearwood: "It's important that all students are in the seat. All research that I've done shows if a student is in a seat, over 85 or 90%, we see educational outcomes are three times more likely to be successful in their educational outcomes."

Q: "Not every student has a bus to take to school. Is that fair and it's all taxpayer money." 

Yearwood: "My response to that is what's the best options for students? Are there students who can get to school on their own? Are there students who are not able to get to school? The question is what's best decision for our students? Is it best to not have busing? To have busing? That's a verdict that's still out. We have to be excellent stewards of our taxpayer dollars."

Q: "We did a story about the high salaries in the Central Office in the cabinet positions. Do you think those position should be paid that high?"

Yearwood: "We have to look at what are you paying for? You are paying for expertise and talents and you have to be competitive because you want your leadership to be of a high quality."

Q: "People have been critical because they see these high salaries for the leadership positions and teachers aren't getting paid that high."

Yearwood: "You've hit on a soft spot of mine. My parents were educators and were not paid very well, and we struggled financially. I would hope and wish one day that we see an elevation in our teacher's salaries. I don't think teachers get paid enough. That is a passion of mine to ensure our teacher salaries are competitive, ones that can sustain a family.

"I'll be looking at everything. I'll be examining. We want to make sure we are excellent stewards of our taxpayer dollars. As far as coming in with any preconceived notion of cutting this or moving this, I don't have that yet, not until I get that data and all the information."

Yearwood said he's ready to take over JCPS as its new superintendent. Marty Pollio will take take his new position as the President of Ivy Tech Community College on July 1.

Related Stories:

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Final 2 superintendent candidates make their case to lead JCPS in Louisville

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