Spokane Superintendent Redinger no longer in running for Nashville job

Spokane Public Schools Superintendent Shelley Redinger is no longer in the running for the top position at the school district in Nashville, Tennessee.

On Friday, the school board of Metro Nashville Schools held a special meeting, suspended its search and promoted Interim Superintendent Adrienne Battle.

Redinger was also recently competing for the top position in the Scottsdale Unified School District in Arizona, but she withdrew from consideration Feb. 21, saying she and her husband decided the fit wasn’t “good enough for us to leave Spokane.”

Like other districts, Nashville is closed because of the coronavirus. The city and school district also are dealing with the effects of a tornado on the night of March 2-3 that killed 26 people and caused an estimated $90 million in damage.

Redinger was one of five semifinalists for the position, which was to be decided after each candidate was interviewed by stakeholders and the board.

Redinger interviewed on March 2, the day the tornado struck. She flew back to Spokane the next day as the board suspended the search indefinitely and conducted no further interviews.

As the coronavirus added to the district’s woes, the school board decided to appoint Battle.

“While adhering to the search process is vitally important, I understand we must respond rapidly to changing circumstances and provide stability,” board chair Anna Shepherd said.

Redinger, who has led Spokane schools since summer 2012, was one of 19 applicants in Nashville.