MADISON, Wis. -- The next leader of Madison public schools could come from a much larger school district.

Top officials from Miami, Boston and Columbus school districts are among those who have applied to be the next Madison school superintendent and made the first cut. On Monday, the Madison Metropolitan School District's Board of Education released the names of the top five semi-finalists, who they said best met their criteria, WISC-TV reported.

The five finalists are:

Dr. Bart Anderson, superintendent of Franklin County Schools in Columbus, Ohio

Dr. Steve Gallon, district administrator of Miami/Dade public schools in Florida

Dr. James McIntyre, chief operating officer of Boston public schools in Massachusetts

Dr. Daniel Nerad, superintendent of Green Bay area public schools

Dr. Marguerite Vanden Wyngaard, chief academic officer of Racine public schools

"All of these people, based upon the information that we received this evening, are exciting, dynamic candidates that all have a lot to offer for the school district," said school board president Arlene Silveira.

Two of the five candidates are minorities, officials said.

The board will interview all five candidates on Jan. 18, and then narrow the field to three. The week after, the remaining three candidates will be interviewed again and will visit the community.

On Jan. 26, he board will choose its preferred finalist, which would be finalized in February.