The public will get the chance to see the two finalists for Warwick superintendent next week, while the candidates will have the opportunity to gain further insights into the school system.

The names of the two finalists were released Tuesday by the Warwick School Committee. They are Lori B. McEwen, Ph. D., currently chief of instruction, leadership and equity for the Providence School Department, and Cumberland Superintendent Dr. Philip Thornton.

“Finding the right leader is an essential part of our efforts to continue to build a stronger district and provide the best possible education for our children,” committee chair Jennifer Ahearn said in a statement.

According to the plan drafted by interim Superintendent William Holland, both of the candidates will have a full day of Warwick school activities, starting with a tour of some schools and meeting with school administrators and the mayor during the day. That evening, they will attend about an hour-long forum at Toll Gate High School, during which a moderator will ask than questions selected from 879 queries garnered in a survey conducted earlier this year. The day will close out at an executive session with the school committee.

McEwen is scheduled to visit the city on Tuesday, with Thornton being here the following day. Both the Tuesday and Wednesday forums will start at 6 p.m.

The finalists were selected from 24 applicants seeking to fill the top job that became available when Richard D’Agostino retired in July. Holland, who was named interim at the same meeting when D’Agostino retired, immediately launched the search for a superintendent. His goal has been to have someone in place by the end of this year.

He said yesterday both finalists have indicated they are prepared to step in sooner than the end of the year if selected.

McEwen has an extensive background in teaching and administration at the middle and high school levels. 

Majoring in secondary education and English, she graduated magna cum laude from Boston College in 1991. She went on to earn her master’s degree in education administration from the University of Massachusetts before returning to Boston College to earn a Ph.D. in education administration in 2007.

McEwen worked as a high school English teacher at Uxbridge High School in the early 1990s, going on to teach the subject at Cohannet Middle School in Taunton, Mass. She also taught English at North Kansas High in Missouri until 1998.

Her role as an administrator began as an assistant principal at the Derry Cooperative School District in Derry, N.H., from 1998 until 2000. She went on to serve as a graduate assistant supervisor at the Lynch School of Education at Boston College from 2000 until 2003. In 2009, she became assistant principal at Portsmouth High School in Rhode Island, staying in that role until 2012.

McEwen has also served as director of academics at the Blackstone Valley Prep Mayoral Academy in Cumberland, as a staff development consultant for Teachers21 in Wellesley, Mass., and as a research associate at Boston College. She also served as program evaluator for the Alberta Ministry of Education in Canada.

Thornton has served in his role as Cumberland superintendent for the last four years, and has faced school funding hurdles repeatedly during his tenure.

A Woonsocket native, Thornton earned a degree from Colby College in American studies in 1987. He went on to earn a master’s in education administration from Providence College, and a doctorate in educational leadership from Johnson and Wales in 2003.

Thornton began teaching in 1988 as a long-term substitute in four area school districts. He then spent several years teaching high school history. His longtime administrative experience includes roles as assistant principal at Exeter-West Greenwich high school and director of curriculum and instruction in the Exeter-West Greenwich district.

Thornton served as assistant superintendent for the Chariho Regional school district, assistant superintendent of teaching and learning for the North Kingstown schools, and in 2008 as the interim superintendent of schools for North Kingstown. In March 2009, he became North Kingstown’s superintendent of schools, serving in that role until July 2011.