ST. LOUIS — Three finalists vying to be the next superintendent for St. Louis Public Schools (SLPS) have been selected and will meet the school community this week.

The three final candidates are Dr. Jermaine Dawson, chief academic and accountability officer for Birmingham City Schools, Dr. Keisha Scarlett, chief academic officer and assistant superintendent of academics for Seattle Public Schools, and Dr. Nicole Williams, interim superintendent for SLSP.

Each candidate will spend a day in the district, record a brief introduction and interview video for the public, moderated by Dr. Karen Hall, national search director with Ray & Associations, according to a press release.

The interviews will be posted on SLSP’s YouTube channel Thursday, Jan. 26.

“We are excited to host these three very impressive career educators and introduce them to our community,” SLPS Board President Matt Davis said.

“On their visits, they will have opportunities to visit classrooms and meet and interact with students and staff members individually and in small groups.”

The board of education will select a new superintendent by Jan. 31.

A total of 1,715 leaders nationwide were contacted by Ray & Associates for the SLPS superintendent position and 49 submitted applications, according to the press release. Those 49 applicants were then screened for experience and academic background, as well as compared against results of community engagement focus groups and surveys.

“The earlier community focus groups and surveys gave us a clear idea of what students, teachers and families wanted in a new superintendent,” Davis said. “We created a solid profile of what kind of leader we were looking for and are thrilled that we received such a tremendous response from educators locally and across the country.”

The new superintendent will begin in July. Currently, Dr. Nicole Williams, who also is a candidate, is interim superintendent. She follows Dr. Kelvin Adams who retired in December.