On Tuesday night, the Stamford Board of Education unanimously voted to appoint Dr. Adrian Talley as the next Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools.
Stamford Public Schools is the fifth larges school district in Connecticut, serving more than 16,400 students in grades Pre-K through 12.
Stamford Public Schools BOE.
In the BOE’s announcement, Dr. Talley is described as a career educator with more than 35 years of experience as a teacher, school administrator, district leader, and superintendent in large, diverse, urban and suburban districts.
Coming from Indian Prairie School District 204 in Illinois, where he has been the Superintendent of Schools since July 2020, Dr. Talley will join Stamford Public Schools effective July 1, 2026.
During his tenure, Indian Prairie School District 204 developed its first comprehensive strategic plan, strengthened school improvement processes to ensure clearer goal-setting, monitoring, and accountability, increased AP Scholar recognition by 28%, surpassing pre-pandemic levels, and secured voter approval of a $420 million capital bond referendum to enhance safety, infrastructure, and long-term operational efficiency.
“The Board was fortunate to meet with a number of highly qualified candidates, but Dr. Talley stood out from the start as a leader who had driven meaningful, lasting change in school districts with profiles similar to Stamford,” said Stamford School Board President Andy George. “His commitment to equity and achievement, experience managing complex systems and budgets, and reputation as a relationship builder made him the clear choice to lead Stamford Public Schools.”
“Public education is a community enterprise, and a school system belongs to the community it serves,” said Dr. Talley in the announcement. “As the next Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools, I am committed to bringing people together around a shared vision to ensure the district achieves measurable, sustainable improvement, particularly in advancing equity, strengthening student outcomes, and maintaining public confidence.”
Earlier in his career, Dr. Talley served as Principal Deputy Director and Associate Director of Education for the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA), where he oversaw a $1.9 billion budget and supported instructional programs across 181 schools serving 84,000 military-connected students worldwide. He also held multiple leadership roles in Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland, including Associate Superintendent, Shared Accountability (2011-2012) and Community Superintendent (2006-2011). As Community Superintendent, he managed 40 schools serving more than 29,000 students. During his tenure, MCPS received the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award for performance excellence.
Dr. Talley earned a Doctor of Education in Education Administration and Policy from The George Washington University, a Master of Arts in Higher Education Administration from Boston College, and a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education from the University of Virginia.
Dr. Talley’s appointment is the culmination of a comprehensive, nationwide search conducted by Zeal Education Group on behalf of the Board of Education. Zeal engaged 27 highly qualified candidates from 11 different states for the position of Superintendent of Stamford Public Schools, all of whom reflected the qualities highlighted in a leadership profile developed through the community engagement phase in January.
From this initial pool of 27 candidates, the Board of Education identified five semifinalists who were interviewed by the BOE in March. The BOE conducted in-person interviews with the finalists earlier this month.
Dr. Talley will begin his tenure on July 1 and will immediately embark on a series of community engagement sessions, with details to be announced in late June.