Almost two months after Jeanette Ball’s surprise resignation as superintendent of the Judson Independent School District, the Southwest Independent School District named her as the lone finalist for its top job Tuesday.
Ball was named the lone finalist during a meeting of SWISD’s board of trustees Tuesday, according to a statement from the district. The board must now wait 21 days before trustees can hire her as superintendent. Trustees are scheduled to vote to offer a contract to Ball on Feb. 8.
If hired, Ball would replace Lloyd Verstuyft, who announced in October that he was retiring at the end of the 2022-2023 school year. Verstuyft had been SWISD superintendent for 13 years and an employee of the district for more than 30 years.
In late November, Ball tendered her resignation at Judson ISD, which was effective immediately. No reason was given for her resignation at the time or whether she was asked to resign.
Ball had led Judson since 2018 and was under contract with the district through January 2025. She helped shepherd a $345.3 million bond to approval by voters on Nov. 8 and was named Superintendent of the year in 2021 for Education Service Center Region 20. Ball previously served as superintendent of the Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District.
According to the district, Ball was among six applicants who were selected for an initial interview and was one of two applicants invited for a second interview. Trustees hired the Texas Association of School Board Executive Search Services to direct the search.
