"We are thrilled and honored that Mr. John A. Serrano has accepted our invitation to assume leadership of MSD and serve as the next superintendent. John impressed the search committee, the MSD community, and the Board of Trustees with his passion for quality education for all Deaf students and the tenets of MSD’s mission and values,” said Corey Burton, president of MSD’s Board of Trustees. “As an experienced K-12 educator and administrator, he has demonstrated a commitment to leading and serving students, families, and employees with equity, inclusivity, and collaboration. These qualifications, along with an enthusiastic-energy and impressive track record of leadership and achievement, make John the ideal leader for MSD.”
Mr. Serrano’s appointment was ratified by a vote of the MSD Board of Trustees at a special meeting held on the Columbia Campus on January 9, 2023. He will officially begin his superintendency on January 25, 2023.
“It is a tremendous honor to be selected as the next Superintendent of MSD," said Mr. Serrano. “Words cannot adequately describe how excited and eager I am to be a part of this great school; and I look forward to working together with faculty, staff, families and community members to serve the students and to prepare for future generations to come. As excited as I am, I look forward to beginning a new chapter with MSD. I am committed to hitting the ground running and getting started with the great work MSD has been doing to bring the school forward to support this year’s school theme of belonging and becoming. Lastly but not least, let me proudly state this for the first time: Go Orioles!”
Mr. Serrano brings extensive experience working in the field of K-12 Deaf education, including 13 years of administrative and management experience. He began his K-12 education career at the Texas School for the Deaf (TSD) as an elementary school teacher, teaching grades 3 through 5. Over the course of his 13 years with TSD, Mr. Serrano advanced through various administrative leadership roles, serving as a program supervisor, assistant principal and principal of the High School, and director of Academic Affairs. Prior to assuming his current role as executive director of Undergraduate Admissions at Gallaudet University, Mr. Serrano served for four-years as the school-level superintendent of the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf (AASD), a day school serving over 150 Deaf/DHH students in the metropolitan Atlanta area.
Mr. Serrano graduated from American School for the Deaf (ASD) in Connecticut and attended Gallaudet University for his undergraduate and graduate studies, where he majored in Elementary Education and Deaf Education. He holds the following certifications from the state of Maryland: Elementary Education (1-6), Deaf and Hard of Hearing Pre-K-12, Administrator I – Supervisor and Assistant Principal, and Area Superintendent I/II. Mr. Serrano serves as a governing board member for both the Conference of Educational Administrators of Schools and Programs for the Deaf (CEASD) and the American School for the Deaf. John resides in Montgomery County, Maryland with his wife, Melly, and three children, Natalia (14), AJ (13), and Matthew (6).
“While the search for a new superintendent was a protracted process, MSD has been extremely fortunate to have a stellar team of staff that have taken on additional responsibilities to ensure that the school continued to serve and support MSD students and their families without disruption, as well as successfully completed or made noteworthy progress on critical initiatives. I would be remiss if I did not take this opportunity to convey the Board’s sincere appreciation to them here,” shared Mr. Burton. “I especially wish to thank Ann Miller, Jennifer Yost Ortiz, and Kevin Strachan for their period of service as interim superintendent over the last 3 years.”
The Maryland School for the Deaf Board of Trustees also extends its sincere gratitude and appreciation to Trustees Akilah English and Krista Leitch Walker, co-chairs, and the members of the Superintendent Search Committee for their hard work and dedicated service. Additionally, the Board thanks executive search firm, Innivee Strategies, Inc., for their guidance and assistance throughout the superintendent search process.
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