MENOMONEE FALLS, Wis. — The Menomonee Falls School Board has named its new superintendent after a controversial hiring process.
David Muñoz has been the superintendent of the Mosinee School District since 2019 and was selected in a 6 to 1 vote on Monday.
Board member Keri Duce was the one dissenting vote. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Duce said “I am a five-year board member, have a master’s in education, and I am the only one up here whose campaign was not paid for by WisRed.”
The selection comes after protests from Grassroots Menomonee Falls Area. Members of the group said teachers and principals had been excluded from the search process and that no educational experts were involved in interviewing candidates.
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The group held two rallies outside elementary schools in Menomonee Falls last week. They expressed concern over the background of Muñoz and the other finalist Jerry Sardina after both withdrew as finalists in the search for another district’s superintendent. They withdrew from consideration after criticism from parents and community members in the Hartland-Lakeview School District in spring.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Menomonee Falls teachers are not allowed to comment on the matter because of a district policy that designates the superintendent as the media contact for any controversial or districtwide issue.
Muñoz succeeds Corey Golla, who was the superintendent from 2018 to 2022 and left to become the principal at Wauwatosa West High School. James Heiden has since been the interim superintendent for Menomonee Falls.