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NATCHEZ — The Concordia Parish School Board President Fred Butcher released the names of eight applicants for the superintendent of school’s position on Tuesday.

Butcher said as part of the application, all of the applicants to the position were informed that Louisiana law provides applications for school superintendent are public record and subject to release to the media or press.

The eight applicants include:

• Troy Bell, currently employed with Franklin Parish School Board in Winnsboro as a child welfare and attendance supervisor;
• Montrell Greene, minister at Sycamore Street Church of Christ in Greenwood and the founder and executive director at Empowerment 360 Foundation and Montrell Greene Ministries;
• Susan M. Henson, interim superintendent of New Hampshire School Administrative Unit No. 44, Northwood, New Hampshire;
• Arlana Lewin, director of academics and student learning at Madison Parish School Board in Tallulah;
• James Todd Stroder, superintendent of Rogersville City Schools in Rogersville, Tennessee;
• Karen E. Tutor, retired Mississippi school superintendent and educator from McCall Creek and an independent educational consultant;
• Chanel Howard-Veazy, assistant superintendent of schools in Crockett Independent School District in Crockett, Texas;
• Toyua Watson, director of secondary education for the Concordia Parish School Board.

The deadline to apply for the superintendent’s position was March 22. Current Superintendent Whest Shirley continues to work on a month-to-month contract after the board voted not to renew his full contract last year. Shirley began his tenure as the district superintendent in 2017 after he worked 10 years as an administrator and taught school in Vidalia for 22 years.

During Thursday’s regularly scheduled meeting of the Concordia Parish School Board, board members said they would start performing background checks on each of the applicants before interviewing them.