The search for a new superintendent for the Waltham Public Schools District has officially been narrowed down to four candidates, according to a Jan. 23 Patch Waltham article.

The same article noted that though the field began  with 25 potential candidates, the options have now been narrowed to Frank Hackett, Brad Morgan, Sergio Paez and Brian Reagan. The next phase of the search will be public interviews with each of the candidates.

The current interim superintendent is George Frost, who took the role at the end of last school year after former Waltham Superintendent Drew Echelson stepped down after four years, according to a Jan. 3 Patch Waltham article.

The search for a new superintendent was originally intended to have been completed earlier, but that path was altered in November when one of the two finalists withdrew their application, according to a Nov. 22 Patch Waltham article.

Public interviews for the candidates will be held on Jan. 30 at 6:30 p.m. and Feb. 1 at 2:00 p.m. at Waltham High School, according to the Jan. 23 Patch Waltham article.

Hackett is a current superintendent in Braintree, Massachusetts, as reported by a Jan. 23 Patriot Ledger article. The same article noted that though the populations of the two districts are similar, Waltham has a larger budget with $91.5 million, as opposed to Braintree’s budget of $70.5 million.

Morgan is the current superintendent of North Middlesex Regional School District, according to his LinkedIn profile. However, he would not be a stranger to Waltham, having previously been the principal of Waltham’s McDevitt Middle School, according to a Jan. 21, 2008 Patch Waltham article.

Paez currently works as the director of English Language Learning in the Central Falls School District, according to its staff directory. He has experience as a superintendent, having previously served as superintendent of Holyoke Public Schools, according to the Jan. 23 Patch Waltham article.  In an email to the Justice, Holyoke Public Schools were taken over by the state for only the second time in the history of the state. At this time, the superintendent — himself — was replaced by a Receiver. He added that the work he began served as the foundation from which the receiver left off, and there still is no superintendent of The Holyoke Public Schools. Paez has written a book titled “Finding A New Perspective For Urban Education In America.”

Reagan is the current Assistant Superintendent for Curriculum and Staff Development for the Wilmington Public Schools, according to his LinkedIn profile. The district announced Reagan’s position in June 2018, according to a June 8, 2018 Wilmington Apple article.

— An earlier version of this article included information about the circumstances surrounding Paez's departure from the Holyoke Public School District that was removed due to inaccurate information.