TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — The Kansas State Board of Education is expected to vote on its final choice for state education commissioner Thursday.

The state is seeking a replacement for Diane DeBacker, who left her position in May to become an adviser to the director general of the Abu Dhabi Education Council in the United Arab Emirates.

The Lawrence Journal-World (http://bit.ly/13WBu9l ) reports that four candidates are vying for the job. They include Georgia Schools Superintendent John Barge, who unsuccessfully challenged Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal in the spring primary. Also on the list is associate Shawnee Mission school district superintendent Gillian Chapman, interim Kansas education commissioner Bradley Neuenswander and McPherson school district superintendent Randall Watson.

The candidates were interviewed last week.