The School Board of Manatee County has voted to approve Cynthia Saunders as the next Superintendent of the School District of Manatee County. Saunders will serve as superintendent following Dr. Diana Greene, who was named superintendent in Duval County. Saunders has more than 28 years of professional experience in education as a teacher, assistant principal and principal, as well as an Executive Director of Secondary Schools. Prior to becoming Superintendent,. Saunders served as Deputy Superintendent of Instructional Services in Manatee County from July 2015 to June 2018. During her tenure as Deputy Superintendent, the School District of Manatee County made significant gains academically. The Florida Department of Education gave the district a grade of “B” two of the last three years (2015, 2017) after receiving a grade of “C” the previous three years, and, in 2017, for the first time since 2009, not a single Manatee District school received an “F” grade. In addition, the Manatee District’s graduation rate rose from 77.9 percent in 2014-2015 to 83.5 percent for the 2016-2017 school year.

School District of Manatee County