Calcasieu Parish School Board names new superintendent
LAKE CHARLES, La. (KPLC) - The Calcasieu Parish School Board has named a new superintendent.
Following two days of finalist interviews, the board narrowly elected Tuesday night to name Jason VanMetre as the new superintendent in an eight-to-seven vote.
VanMetre is currently serving as CPSB’s Chief Academic Officer, a position he’s held since 2022. Dr. VanMetre has years of experience as an educator in Calcasieu Parish, previously serving as CPSB’s Director of Management Information Systems, Principal of Westlake High School, Assistant Principal at Sulphur High School, and as a teacher at Barbe High.
“As a district-level administrator, you learn real quick that your decisions affect 28,000 students. That’s huge. That impact is substantial, so you’ve got to really think hard about what decisions you’re making because it affects the parish as a whole because the parish as a whole is going to have to work together,” VanMetre said.
Tony McCardle, Director of Career and Technical Education with CPSB was the first interview of the night.
“It’s not a me, it’s a we, we get it done together. I’m going to always surround myself with people to do that so, I think getting the job done. Not taking credit, I’m not here for credit, I’m not here for praise, I’m about teachers, staff, students, and communities. When they win, we all win, we all look great,” McCardle said.
Monday, CPSB interviewed three of the finalists: Max Caldarera Jr., Owen Clanton, and Dr. Stanton Lawrence.
The board will finalize the contract details with VanMetre on Thursday, July 11.
We will add tonight’s interviews to this story.
To view all the candidates and their resumes, click here.
Shannon LaFargue announced his retirement in May after two years as superintendent.
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