Six apply for Douglas superintendent

Six applicants including a Douglas High School graduate, a Washoe County substitute teacher, and an international educator and administrator made it to the scoring part of the superintendent hiring process for Douglas County.

The superintendent application pool closed May 3 and applications are available for viewing on the Douglas County School District website under agenda items for the May 21 for school board meeting.

School board trustees have until May 17 to score and return their screening tools and ratings to be posted for public viewing in time for the next school board meeting.

During the May 21 board meeting, which is also the district’s 2024-2025 tentative budget hearing, a presentation of the applicants is expected to be given. Board of trustees will discuss their individual screening results and will select which candidates will be brought forward for interviews, which will be scheduled as a future special board meeting.

Visit https://www.dcsd.net/ for more information. Further information about the Superintendent candidates can be found under the May 21 board meeting agenda.

Meet the Applicants

Angelo Frankie Alvardo is the Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources for the Ukiah Unified School District in Ukiah, Calif, and has more than 15 years of teaching and administration experience. He holds a bachelor of arts in liberal studies: human development and a masters of education: special emphasis from the University of La Verne, Calif.

Bethany Hughes has almost 20 years of experience in education with 12 years as a special education teacher and the last eight years serving as the Director of Special Education for Dayton City School in Tennessee and most recently with Sweetwater City Schools. Hughes holds a bachelors of science in psychology and a masters of education in special education K-12 from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. She obtained a post-masters certificate in leadership from Carson Newman University in 2022. She has also applied for the open position of executive director of human resources.

Starting out as a substitute teacher in Washoe County, Brent Judy brings 19 years of Northern Nevada experience. He is currently the principal at Virginia City Middle School and High School and was principal of Hillside Elementary School from August 2019 to July 2023. Before that he was the Vice Principal and Athletic Director of Wells Combined Schools in Wells. He obtained a bachelor of science and secondary mathematics from the University of Nevada, Reno, a masters of science from Montana State University, and educational leadership administrator endorsement program from the Western Governors University Online program. Aside from superintendent, Judy is seeking positions for principal at Pa-wa-Lu Middle School and executive director of human resources.

Tony Meinerding applies with more than 20 years administration experience in elementary, middle, high school and district-wide school in the United States, Brazil, China, India, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Most recently, Meidering served as superintendent of Rowad AI Khaleeji International Schools: Riyadh, where he helped oversee the initial United States and International AdvanceED/Cognia Accreditation. According to his application, the student population at the school grew from 34 to more than 400 students under his direction. He has also applied for the principal position at Pa-Wa-Lu Middle School.

A Douglas High School graduate, Patrick Peters returns to the Valley to apply for the district’s top position. For the last 30 years Peters has gained experience in Silver Springs in the Lyon County School District, eight as a teacher and more than 20 years in administration, including most recently principal at Silver Stage High School. Peters has a Lassen College associates degree in business, liberal arts and physical education, a bachelor’s degree from Sonoma State University, a Sierra Nevada College elementary education credential, and master’s in educational leadership from the University of Phoenix.

Currently the superintendent for Anderson Valley Unified School District, a public TK-12 rural school in Mendocino County, Calif., Louise Simson brings 14 years of experience in education and three years in administration. Prior to Anderson Valley, she served at the assistant superintendent and principal at Vallecito Union School District, TK-8th grade and three campus system in the Calaveras Foothills. Before that she was a special education teacher serving mild to severe students providing behavior management strategies and accommodations and modification of common core curriculum. She has a bachelor of science human services and a master of arts in special education from Notre Dame de Namur University in Belmont, Calif.