Speculation about Rockdale County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Samuel King’s possible application to other superintendent positions in the metro Atlanta area has been a hot topic in local papers.

Last week, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reported that King was to be named a sole finalist in the search for Cobb County School District's search for a superintendent, according to sources close to the search.

However, at the Cobb County School District school board meeting April 28, there was no discussion of the superintendent’s position. The board did meet an hour earlier than usual for a two-hour executive session before the official meeting and went back into executive session again for about another hour and a half after the meeting concluded around 9:30 p.m.

Cobb County school board Chairman Alison Bartlett declined to comment on whether King was still a candidate. "We are in the process of hiring a superintendent," said Bartlett. "I will not tell you who we’re interviewing, who we have interviewed."

"Until we formally announce, there won’t be any other comments," she said.

Post 4 Cobb County school board member Kathleen Angelucci said, "We’re in the depths of this process."

Calls and messages to King and Barksdale were not returned.

Cobb County is the second largest school system in the state with 106,000 students and 114 schools. RCPS has about 16,000 students and 18 schools (excluding non-traditional schools such as Rockdale Career Academy). Cobb County Superintendent Fred Sanderson reportedly received a salary of about $216,000 in FY2010, according to open.georgia.gov. King reportedly received a salary of about $222,000 in FY2010.

Cobb County school board's next scheduled meeting is May 11. The school board is required to name a finalist 14 days before a final vote. Candidates who do not want to be named publically are allowed to withdraw their names before this time.

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(April 23, 10:15 a.m. ) Rockdale County Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Samuel King is reportedly to be named a sole finalist in the search for Cobb County School District's search for a superintendent, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

School board member Darlene Hotchkiss said she had not heard anything official but was not surprised. "He's Superintendent of the Year," she said. "I'm not surprised he'd be offered. He should be a very sought-after educator."

School board member Jean Yontz echoed the sentiment. "He's a young, extremely talented man," she said.

King is in his sixth year as Rockdale Superintendent and has 26 years as an educator. RCPS has made AYP for the past five years in a row. He was named 2011 Superintendent of the Year by the Georgia Schools Superintendent Association and Georgia School Board Association, after his third nomination as a finalist. King is also the president-elect for the Georgia Schools Superintenents Association.

Cobb County is the second largest school system in the state with 106,000 students and 114 schools. RCPS has about 16,000 students and 18 schools (excluding non-traditional schools such as Rockdale Career Academy).

The school board is required to name a finalist 14 days before a final vote, according to the AJC.

King currently resides in Rockdale with his wife, three sons, and daughter, who is a student at Salem High School.