Only three candidates remain in the search for the next superintendent of Niles Community Schools.

The board of education Thursday voted to bring back for a second round of interviews the following three finalists:

• Michael Pettibone, retired superintendent of Adams Central Community Schools in Monroe, Indiana

• Christopher Daughtry, superintendent of Central Noble Community Schools in Albion, Indiana

• Daniel Applegate, assessment and accreditation coordinator at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana

The board started with 23 candidates and interviewed six finalists this week.

“We were very fortunate to have a great pool of candidates with a proven track record,” said Greg O’Toole, board president. “The difficulty of any board is finding the best match of the person’s skillset and the needs of the district.”

The finalists will begin the second round of interviews next week. Each candidate will go through the same process, which is as follows:

10 a.m. to 2:45 p.m. — Tour the district

* 3 to 3:30 p.m. — Public meet and greet

*3:30 to 4:30 p.m. — NCS employees meet and greet

*4:30 to 5 p.m. — Public meet and greet

* This is an informal meet and greet and all of the sessions will be in the board room at Westside Administrative Center, 111 Spruce St., Niles. All are encouraged to attend as it is an opportunity for the community to ask questions and get to know the candidates.

5 to 6 p.m. — Dinner with the board of education

6 p.m. — Second interview by the board of education at Westside

Pettibone will go through the process Monday, Jan. 12, while Applegate will go Wednesday, Jan. 14 and Daughtry Thursday, Jan. 15.

Interim Supt. Michael Lindley advised the board to narrow the list down to two by the end of the second round of interviews Thursday.

After the second round of interviews, a team of district and community stakeholders will visit the remaining candidates’ communities to continue the process of finding the right person for the job.

O’Toole thanked Lindley for his assistance in facilitating the search.

“He’s been our guiding light in this by setting this up and organizing the search process and bringing us to the table at this point,” O’Toole said. “It is greatly appreciated by all here.”

Lindley came on after former Supt. Richard Weigel resigned in February.