Topeka ? The State Board of Education on Wednesday began interviewing the four finalists – three Kansans and a Virginian – for the top public schools job in Kansas.

John Morton, the current superintendent of the Newton school district, has publicly stated he is one of the finalists, and Alexa Posny, an assistant commissioner at the Kansas State Department of Education, confirmed to the Lawrence Journal-World that she also is being considered.

A man who was being interviewed Wednesday by the board refused to identify himself but was then introduced as Nick Fischer, an assistant superintendent for the Fairfax County, Va., school district.

A fourth candidate is Sharol Little of Manhattan, a former superintendent at several Kansas school districts, according to sources. She could not be reached for comment.

Little, Posny and Morton were to be interviewed today.

The position was vacated by Andy Tompkins, who had served as commissioner since 1996, the longest tenure of any education commissioner in Kansas history.

Tompkins has taken a position as an associate professor in the Kansas University School of Education’s educational leadership program.

The commissioner has one of the most high-profile jobs in state government, guiding a department that oversees the Kansas public school system.

With the State Board of Education racked by political warfare between conservatives and moderates, and the state facing court-ordered school funding increases, the appointment process has fueled much speculation.

The Lawrence Journal-World previously requested the names of the finalists under the Kansas Open Records Act, but the State Department of Education refused.