MONROE — Following a recent search and round of finalist interviews, Rodney Figueroa has been named the new district administrator for the School District of Monroe.

The matter was on the agenda for Monday night’s school board meeting, and board members agreed to offer the job to Figueroa, who is in his sixth year as Superintendent in the Pittsville School District in central Wisconsin. 

“He’s an innovative thinker,” said Board President Rich Deprez. “He’s going to be a great fit for Monroe and he’s just as excited about joining us.”

Figueroa was selected from among the top three candidates, all of whom came to Monroe for site visits in recent weeks. The new district administrator would take over as the district continues to push for a referendum to build a new high school and amid a dip in academic performance at the middle and high school level.

The new leader would replace Rick Waski, who was principal of Monroe High School from 2010 to 2013. He left Monroe for a time to serve as district administrator for the Adams-Friendship school district. Waski decided to leave his post this year, citing long-term health issues.

Figueroa also is an athlete, boasting a 10th place finish in the Olympic Games in Freestyle Wrestling and with USA Athletes in Action. 

Earlier this year, a search firm, Hazard, Young and Attea, did a “Leadership Profile Assessment” for the future Monroe administrator.

Among other findings, the report offered “three consistent themes” as urgent challenges for the School District of Monroe. Those include the need to focus on academic improvement — especially at the middle and high school levels — the need to focus and support the rapidly growing Hispanic (and English as a second language) population and their families; and the need to improve facilities “hopefully through the passing of the Fall 2022” referendum. 

The School District of Monroe is the biggest in the region, made up of 360 staff and 2,270 students across 5 Monroe school facilities.

“A new superintendent will need to pay immediate attention to these urgent areas,” the report said. “The future leader of the District should be interested in continuous improvement and addressing lagging academic performance.”

Deprez and the board said they were pleased to be able to consider a host of excellent candidates.

“We thank all the candidates who applied and came to visit,” he said.