Miami-Dade County school board names Rafael Villalobos as new superintendent: ‘I’m ready on day one’
By Natalie La Roche Pietri
July 29, 2026 at 1:25 PM EDT
The Miami-Dade School District’s next superintendent will be Rafael Villalobos, the current South Region Superintendent.
The months-long search to replace outgoing Superintendent Dr. Jose Dotres culminated Wednesday, when the Miami-Dade School Board voted unanimously for Villalobos during a special meeting in which the two finalists for the role were interviewed.
“I was born to be an educator,” Villalobos said in his opening statement. He recalled the variety of education roles he’s served in the district. “I've had the honor and the privilege to touch the lives of so many students, so many families, so many communities, and so many partnerships throughout that process.”
Each board member got to ask one question, with a chance for a follow-up after each of the finalists' first responses.
Villalobos, 54, sat before the School Board dais as members posed questions about achieving long-term financial sustainability amidst dwindling enrollment, improving school campus safety and increasing student literacy rates even in the face of achievement gaps.
READ MORE: Down to two: The search for Miami-Dade's next superintendent moves forward
School closures and consolidations were in focus, too. None of the board members asked about teacher salaries, even as Florida stands as the worst state for teacher pay nationwide. Villalobos, however, took an opportunity to bring educator compensation into view.
Asked about his top three priorities he answered, “I want to be in a place where we are fiscally sound and that we have a surplus of dollars that then we can help our staff, those that work with students directly and indirectly, have appropriate salaries.”
However, he didn't have a definitive figure as to what that raise might be.
"I'd have to see what the budget entails right now before I can actually make that comment of what percentage I would like," he told WLRN. "I completely think that teachers should be raised at top dollar [and] definitely here in Miami because the ability for them to survive without working two and three jobs sometimes is very difficult."
In addition, Villalobos said he would focus on achieving 100% reading proficiency and elevating the district higher on the national stage.
And when it comes to under-enrollment, it's the " greatest issue" the district faces. With Haitian TPS coming an end, that could further shrink enrollment count. Villalobos wants parents and guardians to know "that we are welcoming every single child into our schools, that we have processes in place to support children at any level," he said at the press conference after the meeting.
Villalobos was one of two finalists vying to lead the state’s largest school district and third largest in the U.S. The other hopeful, Ernie Lozano, is chief human resources officer at Broward County Public Schools.
Villalobos has been a Miami-Dade County educator for more than two decades. He began as a special education teacher, ascended to assistant principal and, eventually, principal. Before becoming south region superintendent, he was the regional director.
In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, then-superintendent Alberto Carvalho named Villalobos principal of the year as the leader of John A. Ferguson Senior High School in Kendall. The high school has earned an A grade for the last 5 consecutive years, according to state data.
He’s a doctoral candidate for educational leadership and policy at Florida International University, with an expected graduation date in December 2027.
Controversial search process
The search process has stirred some anger from education advocates and a school board member over being too closed off to the public and only arriving at two semifinalists, over a traditional three.
The board has held special meetings throughout the process and early on in the search process sent invitations to union representatives, student government participants, business leaders and more. A website was also created in which all community members could provide feedback about what most matters to them in a strong superintendent.
The candidates both had opportunities to ask the board questions. Both Lozano and Villalobos yielded this opportunity.
Board member Luisa Santos, at last week’s meeting, said she was "disappointed" in having only two finalists. She said she wanted to see more candidates move forward to give the public a chance to question and interact with the eventual leader of the state's largest public school system.
" I personally do not feel like we are doing right by our community's request of us to be able to be a part of that process," Santos said at the time. "Of course, they gave us input, but they have not seen any of these finalists answer any questions."
Superintendent Jose Dotres’ legacy
Current superintendent Jose Dotres is down to the final stretch of his run. As laid out by his contract, his tenure is planned to end Feb. 14, 2027.
He began serving as chief of the school system in 2022 after former leader Alberto Carvalho left to head the Los Angeles Unified School District.
With Dotres at the helm, Miami-Dade County Public Schools achieved a record-high graduation rate of 93.1% for the 2024-25 school year, including charter schools. It was higher than the prior year and the district called it "the highest graduation rate in history."
Dotres joined the meeting after the candidates were both questioned and appeared with the board and Villalobos at a press conference following the meeting.
"This is a man that I've known for so many years, has had multiple leadership roles, and I am so confident that this school district will continue with its trajectory of success," Dotres said.
The school year begins Thursday Aug. 13. The board is expected to meet Aug. 19 to discuss salary negotiations and transition.
Villalobos put together a website with the plan he would follow for the first 100 days of his tenure.
“ I'm ready on day one,” Villalobos said in his closing statement to the board. “I've been doing this work with efficiency, with love, compassion, determination — I've never stopped.”
The months-long search to replace outgoing Superintendent Dr. Jose Dotres culminated Wednesday, when the Miami-Dade School Board voted unanimously for Villalobos during a special meeting in which the two finalists for the role were interviewed.
“I was born to be an educator,” Villalobos said in his opening statement. He recalled the variety of education roles he’s served in the district. “I've had the honor and the privilege to touch the lives of so many students, so many families, so many communities, and so many partnerships throughout that process.”
Each board member got to ask one question, with a chance for a follow-up after each of the finalists' first responses.
Villalobos, 54, sat before the School Board dais as members posed questions about achieving long-term financial sustainability amidst dwindling enrollment, improving school campus safety and increasing student literacy rates even in the face of achievement gaps.
READ MORE: Down to two: The search for Miami-Dade's next superintendent moves forward
School closures and consolidations were in focus, too. None of the board members asked about teacher salaries, even as Florida stands as the worst state for teacher pay nationwide. Villalobos, however, took an opportunity to bring educator compensation into view.
Asked about his top three priorities he answered, “I want to be in a place where we are fiscally sound and that we have a surplus of dollars that then we can help our staff, those that work with students directly and indirectly, have appropriate salaries.”
However, he didn't have a definitive figure as to what that raise might be.
"I'd have to see what the budget entails right now before I can actually make that comment of what percentage I would like," he told WLRN. "I completely think that teachers should be raised at top dollar [and] definitely here in Miami because the ability for them to survive without working two and three jobs sometimes is very difficult."
In addition, Villalobos said he would focus on achieving 100% reading proficiency and elevating the district higher on the national stage.
And when it comes to under-enrollment, it's the " greatest issue" the district faces. With Haitian TPS coming an end, that could further shrink enrollment count. Villalobos wants parents and guardians to know "that we are welcoming every single child into our schools, that we have processes in place to support children at any level," he said at the press conference after the meeting.
Villalobos was one of two finalists vying to lead the state’s largest school district and third largest in the U.S. The other hopeful, Ernie Lozano, is chief human resources officer at Broward County Public Schools.
Villalobos has been a Miami-Dade County educator for more than two decades. He began as a special education teacher, ascended to assistant principal and, eventually, principal. Before becoming south region superintendent, he was the regional director.
In 2020, at the height of the pandemic, then-superintendent Alberto Carvalho named Villalobos principal of the year as the leader of John A. Ferguson Senior High School in Kendall. The high school has earned an A grade for the last 5 consecutive years, according to state data.
He’s a doctoral candidate for educational leadership and policy at Florida International University, with an expected graduation date in December 2027.
Controversial search process
The search process has stirred some anger from education advocates and a school board member over being too closed off to the public and only arriving at two semifinalists, over a traditional three.
The board has held special meetings throughout the process and early on in the search process sent invitations to union representatives, student government participants, business leaders and more. A website was also created in which all community members could provide feedback about what most matters to them in a strong superintendent.
The candidates both had opportunities to ask the board questions. Both Lozano and Villalobos yielded this opportunity.
Board member Luisa Santos, at last week’s meeting, said she was "disappointed" in having only two finalists. She said she wanted to see more candidates move forward to give the public a chance to question and interact with the eventual leader of the state's largest public school system.
" I personally do not feel like we are doing right by our community's request of us to be able to be a part of that process," Santos said at the time. "Of course, they gave us input, but they have not seen any of these finalists answer any questions."
Superintendent Jose Dotres’ legacy
Current superintendent Jose Dotres is down to the final stretch of his run. As laid out by his contract, his tenure is planned to end Feb. 14, 2027.
He began serving as chief of the school system in 2022 after former leader Alberto Carvalho left to head the Los Angeles Unified School District.
With Dotres at the helm, Miami-Dade County Public Schools achieved a record-high graduation rate of 93.1% for the 2024-25 school year, including charter schools. It was higher than the prior year and the district called it "the highest graduation rate in history."
Dotres joined the meeting after the candidates were both questioned and appeared with the board and Villalobos at a press conference following the meeting.
"This is a man that I've known for so many years, has had multiple leadership roles, and I am so confident that this school district will continue with its trajectory of success," Dotres said.
The school year begins Thursday Aug. 13. The board is expected to meet Aug. 19 to discuss salary negotiations and transition.
Villalobos put together a website with the plan he would follow for the first 100 days of his tenure.
“ I'm ready on day one,” Villalobos said in his closing statement to the board. “I've been doing this work with efficiency, with love, compassion, determination — I've never stopped.”