The Bibb County Board of Education has chosen Rochester, Minn. superintendent Romain Dallemand to head the county's school system.

Dallemand, a native of Haiti, came to the U.S. at 15.

He was a mental-health therapist for four years in Florida before becoming an educator.He worked as a principal and assistant superintendent in Hartford, Conn. schools before being hired in Rochester three years ago.

The board voted 5-3 to hire Dallemand, picking him over James Benfield, superintendent in Yadkin County, N.C.

Dallemand replaces Sharon Patterson, who was forced out in February after more than a decade on the job. Since then, Sylvia McGee has filled in as superintendent.

Tags: Bibb County Schools, Sharon Patterson, Romain Dallemand