Kwame Morton, third from right, in a February YouTube video with district faculty members.
Kwame Morton, an administrator in the Cherry Hill School District for 16 years and now the acting superintendent, will likely be formally selected as the superintendent of the largest district in South Jersey at Tuesday's Board of Education meeting.
The district made the announcement on Friday on the district's website. Morton would succeed Joseph Meloche, who last year joined the Rose Tree Media school district in Pennsylvania as its superintendent.
READ MORE: Cherry Hill district's search for a new school superintendent marches on.
READ MORE: Meloche plans to leave after eight years as Cherry Hill school superintendent.
"This step is the result of a search which began in June 2023 and included vast stakeholder input in the form of surveys and focus groups, the board's review of applicants from 11 states, and the board's interviews with several highly qualified candidates," the school board said in its announcement.
Morton received his doctorate in education degree in educational leadership in 2011 from Northcentral University, a San Diego private online college that has since merged into National University in San Diego.
He also received his master's in education administration and supervision in 2002 from The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York, and in 1994 received his bachelor's degree in business administration and management from Pennsylvania Western University, Clarion in Pennsylvania, according to his LinkedIn profile. At Clarion, he was named 1994 Division II Men's Basketball National Player of the Year by the Basketball Times. He graduated from Lafayette High School in Brooklyn, New York.
His education career began in 1996 in New York City public schools, where he rose to assistant principal before leaving in 2005 to join the Philadelphia School District as a principal, according to his profile. He spent nearly three years in the Philadelphia district before joining the Cherry Hill district in 2008 as principal of Kilmer Elementary School.
In 2013, he was named principal of Cherry Hill High School West and in 2021 was named assistant superintendent for pre-kindergarten through grade 12 and curriculum and instruction.
Morton and his wife, April Morton, are the parents of 10 children and one grandchild and live in Franklinville, Gloucester County.
Cherry Hill is the largest district in South Jersey, with 10,706 students, according to the New Jersey Department of Education's fall enrollment report for 2022-23, the latest available. The other top five, in order based on enrollment, were Vineland (Cumberland County), Egg Harbor Township (Atlantic County), Washington Township (Gloucester County) and Camden.
The Board of Education meeting where Morton's appointment will be discussed begins at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday (March 12) in the Lewis Administration Building, 45 Ranoldo Terrace.
"It is anticipated that the Board of Education will vote on a resolution to submit Dr. Morton’s employment contract for approval by the executive county superintendent for Camden County," according to the board announcement.
