This story was updated at 8:06 p.m.
BURLINGTON — School Superintendent Yaw Obeng announced Wednesday that he will be leaving his position at the end of the academic year.
In a morning email to staff and parents, Obeng said that he had informed the Burlington School Board of his decision to step down to pursue other opportunities.
“These last few months of conversations and reflections have also led me to believe that the systemic foundation has been laid to allow me to explore other personal and professional opportunities,” he said.
Obeng, who was hired in 2015, said in an interview with VTDigger that he was proud of his accomplishments as superintendent and had decided it was time to start looking for a new position.
“We’ve had a really good start this year,” he said. “So this is probably a good time to look at the foundation and help transition for the next evolution of Burlington School District.”
Obeng said he was proud of his work to improve the district’s financial standing and identifying and working to close the achievement gap between white students and students of color.
He also highlighted his work on a capital plan to improve the district’s infrastructure and the successful passage of a $70 million bond to renovate Burlington High School.
Obeng said the decision to step down was completely his own and that the school board did not pressure him to step aside.
“They had nothing to do with my decision going forward,” he said.
The board had a special meeting Tuesday evening to discuss Obeng in executive session. School board chair Clare Wool declined to comment on the contents of that discussion after the meeting.
The board has been working on policies which give itself closer supervision over the superintendent.
It took the rare step of rejecting Obeng’s hiring recommendation of two principals of color this spring before reversing course.
The superintendent faced criticism on a handful of other issues.
A 2018 survey showed that 80% of teachers and staff in the district did not believe the school system is a positive community and felt that district leadership did not communicate openly to them.
In February, the district took heat when Mario Macias, the chair of the high school’s guidance department, had his license revoked by the Agency of Education after a panel determined that he was unaware of the basic functions of the guidance department. The high school’s censorship of the student-run newspaper’s coverage of the issue also made headlines.
The school board, in a statement, thanked Obeng and said the district would immediately launch a nationwide search for its next superintendent.
“The Burlington School District is poised for future success thanks in part to his leadership,” the statement said. “The Board respects Superintendent Obeng’s desire for new challenges and looks forward to his continued executive leadership for the remainder of this school year.”
Andrew Styles, the president of the Burlington Educators Association, said the teachers union wanted to wish Obeng well in his future endeavors.
Styles said that the school climate was similar to where it was at the time of the 2018 survey that showed teachers and staff were dissatisfied.
The district has taken steps to address the divide between central office and the district’s teachers and staff, Obeng said. For example, the district worked with the teachers union on teacher mentorship program for new staff, he said.
The district also has fostered an environment which encourages students to be civically engaged, Obeng said. He said the Burlington High School girls’ soccer team’s equal pay activism was just one example of this engagement.
Obeng has made closing the achievement gap a major focus of his work. He said the district has reduced the number of suspensions, particularly for students of color, during his tenure.
In 2018, there was speculation that a newly elected School Board wanted to oust Obeng. Vermont State Police investigated allegations of racial bias, but was unable to determine if there had been bias.
At the time, outgoing school board member Stephanie Seguino speculated in an email to a school board colleague that the “stated intention of the new board is to get rid of Yaw, and that is racially driven,” according to public records acquired by VTDigger.
Seguino’s email came after then-chair Mark Porter accused fellow school commissioner Jeff Wick of saying, “we need to hire more teachers of color, but have we gone too far in hiring district leadership of color?” Wick denied making the remark, and an investigator could not determine if Wick had acted with bias.
Obeng told an investigator at the time that he wondered if bias had played a role in his contract negotiations and said he believed he had grounds to file a human rights complaint.
Obeng said Wednesday that racism and sexism are a prominent issue nationwide, and those issues are not unique to Burlington. He said he was glad the board has decided to undergo implicit bias training.
“I hope we continue to do that work with the district and with the board as we move on to the next few months and put them in a place that they can make good decisions to support all students,” he said.
School Board member Keith Pillsbury said Wednesday that he could not make an overall judgement on Obeng’s tenure as he has only been on the school board for a year and half of it. He said that Obeng’s decision to step aside was his alone.
Obeng said he was focused on moving forward and would not name specific decisions he regretted. He did say he would take more time and get more feedback before instituting changes.
“You want to see results right away, but taking more time to involve some of the partners takes longer but at the end of the day you have a better product because you’ve got better buy-in,” he said.
Obeng said he has had offers in the past that he has declined, but he is now an “empty nester” with his children no longer living at home. He said he felt like it is the right time to make a move and he was proud of the work he had done.
“We can see these improvements on the financial, structural and achievement end,” he said. “Those are really good things to be able to leave behind.”
