Rates of superintendent turnover rose slightly among the nation’s 500 largest school systems in the 2024-25 school year, new data show, and the number of women leading those districts also continued to climb.
Those findings come from the Superintendent Research Project, an annual data analysis compiled by the ILO Group, a consulting firm that advocates for and provides support for women in educational leadership.
Here are three things to know from the latest analysis.
1. Superintendent turnover remains above pre-pandemic levels
The nation’s 500 largest school districts had a superintendent turnover rate of 23% during the 2024-25 school year; 114 of them experienced at least one leadership change in that time.
That’s an increase from the previous year’s turnover rate of 20% and well above historic pre-pandemic averages of 14-16%.
Turnover at the top is a concern as districts face shrinking enrollment, strained budgets, and ongoing struggles to boost student achievement.
“Stability in leadership is stability for students,” Julia Rafal-Baer, the co-founder and CEO of the ILO group, said in a statement. “If we want lasting results for kids, we have to stop treating this role as a revolving door. The talent is here. The experience is here. The will to lead is here.”
(Rafal-Baer serves on the board of trustees for Editorial Projects in Education, Education Week’s publisher. Education Week retains full editorial control of its content.)
2. More large districts are led by women
Women held superintendent positions in 33.2% of the largest districts, an increase from 30.4% in 2024. That number has trended upward since ILO Group launched the data collection in 2018.
Women were also more qualified than their male peers; 74% of female superintendents had doctorates, compared to 69% of men.
But there was still a gender imbalance in hiring decisions. Of the 114 new superintendents appointed in 2024-25, 61% were men. If current trends continue, women superintendents won’t reach parity with their male peers until 2054, the analysis finds.
3. Internal candidates made up the majority of new superintendent hires
Sixty-six of the new superintendents in 2024-25 were internal hires, compared to 48 who were recruited externally, the analysis finds.
Women superintendents were more likely than men to be internal candidates at rates of 55% and 50% respectively. Women were also more likely to be appointed superintendent if they first served as a deputy superintendent or took the superintendent position on an interim basis, which often happens in a time of crisis, the report finds.
“This year’s findings make clear that the leadership churn we once considered temporary is now the new normal, and it is straining districts at the very moment students need steady, effective leadership the most,” Rafal-Baer said. “By tapping into the full pool of highly qualified, battle-tested leaders already in our schools and state education agencies, we can both improve leadership stability and ensure every community has the leadership it needs to meet today’s challenges and deliver for students.”
