Nash Finalist for Rialto School Post

McKinley Nash, the former superintendent of the Centinela Valley Union High School District who was fired last July amid allegations of racial tension in the schools, is a finalist for the superintendent’s post in the Rialto Unified School District.

Nash, who has been working as a visiting professor in educational administration at Cal State Fullerton, was one of two finalists chosen from about 30 applicants, said Dennis Mobley, president of the Rialto district board of trustees.

The other finalist is Marlin Foxworth, the investigator for the state Department of Education who assessed race relations in the Centinela Valley district last summer after students staged two walkouts to protest alleged racism. His report contained several recommendations to ease tensions, including the appointment of an ombudsman to hear complaints.

Mobley, who spent several hours this week speaking to teachers, community leaders and administrators who have worked with Nash and Foxworth, said: “Both candidates are, in my opinion, quality individuals” with “impressive credentials.”

The Rialto board is expected to make a decision by next month, Mobley said. Rialto is a kindergarten-through-12th-grade district in San Bernardino County with a $75-million budget and about 20,000 students. Nearly half the students are minorities.