Candidate Profile: Susan Agruso

Longtime public school teacher and administrator Susan Agruso is one of three candidates vying for the Manatee County School Board's District 2 seat. The non-partisan race will be on August's primary ballot.

Those who follow the school district closely will likely recognize Arguso from her service on the School District of Manatee County Audit Committee. Agruso has been a member for six years (including two as the chair), gaining an intimate understanding of the district's many financial challenges over that time.

The New York native has spent four decades in public education, starting as a high school physics teacher before advancing to a science specialist for the New York State Education Department, where she developed course standards and tests working with teachers from across the state.

After earning a Ph.D. at the University at Albany, Agruso served as the Assessment Director for the South Carolina Department of Education and then as an Assistant Superintendent in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in Charlotte, North Carolina. She then moved back to New York to accept a position as Superintendent of Schools. After retiring, she and her husband moved to Bradenton in 2015.

Agruso is the Executive Officer for the Manatee Sail & Power Squadron. In addition to the audit committee, she has volunteered locally with Dive Into Reading, Kiwanis Christmas in August, her HOA’s Architectural Review Board, and as an AARP Tax-Aide.

Agruso faces former Bradenton City Councilman Harold Byrd andManatee School District Citizens Oversight Committee member Cindy Spray. If no candidate gets a majority of the votes in the August race, the top two vote-getters will square up in a November run-off race. Agrusohas raised just over $13,000 as of the last reporting period, trailing Byrd and holding a slight lead over Spray.