Dear SPS Community:
We are pleased to announce that Dr. Adrian Talley will join Stamford Public Schools as Superintendent effective July 1, 2026. Dr. Talley’s appointment was confirmed just moments ago during the Regular Monthly Meeting of the Board of Education.
Dr. Talley currently serves as Superintendent of Indian Prairie School District 204 (IPSD) in Illinois, a diverse, high-performing district serving more than 26,000 students from four communities in the Chicago suburbs. He has led IPSD since July 2020.
Prior to his tenure with IPSD, Dr. Talley spent the majority of his career on the East Coast, including in senior leadership roles with three of the nation’s largest school districts: Fairfax County (VA) Public Schools, Montgomery County (MD) Public Schools, and Prince George’s County (MD) Public Schools. He also served in a senior leadership role with the Department of Defense Education Activity, the government entity responsible for educating more than 80,000 children from U.S. military families throughout the world.
Feedback provided by SPS teachers, administrators, staff, families, students, and the broader community played an integral role in the Board’s decision to appoint Dr. Talley. Throughout the interview process, we were consistently impressed by Dr. Talley’s commitment to coalition-building, transparent communication, and equity-focused decision-making, qualities that were identified as crucial during the community engagement phase. These qualities, combined with his broad executive experience across curriculum and instruction, student services, accountability, community engagement, and systemwide operations, led to his unanimous selection.
We also would like to thank Zeal Education Group for managing the superintendent search process on the Board’s behalf. The Zeal team, led by founder and CEO Jeff Melendez, provided expert guidance throughout each phase of the process, resulting in a strong slate of candidates from which Dr. Talley emerged as the clear choice for Stamford Public Schools.
Over the next several weeks, Dr. Talley will conclude his work with IPSD while partnering with Dr. Lucero to ensure a smooth transition into his new role leading our district. In late June, we will share information about opportunities for the community to meet Dr. Talley once he is in the district full-time.
To learn more about Dr. Talley, please refer to the press release or his biography.
We look forward to working with Dr. Talley to advance our mission of providing an education that cultivates productive habits of mind, body and heart in every student.
The Stamford Board of Education