He was ready for a new chapter. Now he’s leading PG County schools.

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Before Shawn Joseph was tapped last June to temporarily lead Maryland’s second-largest school system, the longtime educator said he had planned to spend his next chapter in life “preparing aspiring superintendents.”

“But purpose has a way of interrupting comfort,” Joseph, 51, said before pausing to clear a lump in his throat as tears flowed from his eyes. “As I’ve been reunited with Prince George’s County public schools, something has been reignited.”

On Monday, Joseph was chosen by County Executive Aisha N. Braveboy to permanently serve as the county schools’ superintendent.

His selection comes weeks after a search committee, per Maryland law, submitted the names of three finalists following “a comprehensive, national search,” Braveboy said.

The Prince George’s school board must next approve the nomination, and then Maryland Superintendent of Schools Carey M. Wright must also sign off on the appointment, according to the Maryland state education department.

The search committee did not publicly identify the finalists, but Braveboy confirmed Monday that Joseph was a candidate, as she can only select from the names submitted.

Braveboy said input gathered by the search committee, including more than 4,000 community responses as part of the selection process, helped her make the decision. She also said Joseph was consistently rated “the highest and strongest candidate” in interviews with panels that included parents, special education advocates and community leaders.

“This was an important decision, though it was made easier because we already had an amazing interim superintendent,” Braveboy said. “And someone who not only I was impressed with, but the community was impressed with.”

The Prince George’s district has more than 130,000 students and nearly 20,000 employees.

Joseph, a former Prince George’s deputy superintendent, was tapped as the district’s interim leader after former schools chief Millard House II stepped down.

Braveboy said the school system was facing “significant challenges” when Joseph stepped into the interim role. Among them was a divide between the school system and teachers, with contract negotiations stalled, she said. House’s departure came shortly after the teachers union passed a “no confidence” resolution and accused him of causing “widespread dysfunction.”

Braveboy said teacher vacancies have declined by 52 percent since Joseph stepped in, and that the impasse between the school system and teachers has ended. Among other highlights: The district expanded its tuition-free Dual Enrollment opportunities, which allow students to also take college-level classes, to all high schools, Braveboy said.

Speaking at Monday’s news conference, Prince George’s County Educators’ Association President Donna Christy heralded Joseph’s ability to bring people together and how he found a way to prevent teacher layoffs amid a tight budget.

Looking ahead, Joseph is working on a strategic plan for the district that would look at how to, among other things, strengthen literacy and math, improve outcomes for students receiving special education and multilingual services, deepen trust with families, and use resources wisely.

“I think of the student receiving special education services who walks into one of our schools early in the morning, carrying more than a backpack,” Joseph said. “Maybe she’s wondering whether anyone in the building truly sees her. Then, she enters a classroom where a teacher refuses to let her disappear.”

He summed up his leadership philosophy in two words: “children first.”

Joseph said the district will also work to increase professional development for employees. “We’ve got some of the best schools in the country, and we’ve got some schools that are extremely challenged. And the difference between those two is where we really have to lock in with professional development, with the high-quality instruction.”

Before he was appointed as interim, Joseph was an assistant professor at Howard University, and he previously served as superintendent of Metro Nashville Public Schools and the Seaford School District in Delaware.

He was pushed out in 2019 by Nashville Public Schools’ school board amid criticism over his handling of sexual misconduct allegations involving district employees but has denied any wrongdoing. He said that during his tenure there, reading scores improved, and the district made investments in mental health support for students while reducing suspensions.

The Prince George’s superintendent search committee, working with search firm PoliHire, started its work in March. It conducted a community survey that drew more than 4,200 responses, according to a statement from the state education department.

“Our committee worked diligently to lead a transparent, community-driven search grounded in the values of Prince George’s County,” search committee Chair James C. Bell said in the statement last month. “We are confident this process will support the selection of a superintendent committed to strong, student-centered progress for PGCPS.”

On Monday, Raven Hill, a spokesperson for the state board of education, said in a statement that “Dr. Wright and the search committee wish Dr. Joseph and Prince George’s County Public Schools all the best in this next chapter.”

Jasmine Golden is a reporter covering crime and courts on the Metro desk at The Washington Post.