What’s next for Springfield schools as it parts ways with superintendent?

Springfield Public Schools’ Board of Education needs to finalize a resignation agreement with Superintendent Todd Hamilton — but that’s just the first step in the process to hire a new leader for the district, the board chair said Wednesday, Feb. 11.

Jonathan Light outlined decisions facing the board in an interview with Lookout Eugene-Springfield.

Before the superintendent steps down, the district and Hamilton must come to a mutual decision to part ways before the end of his contract, which is June 30. The board had made no moves to renew Hamilton’s contract.

Separation agreements often include details about severance pay, benefits and the release of legal claims. Hamilton and Assistant Superintendent David Collins have filed a tort claim notice declaring their intention to sue the district and three board members. Potential claims include defamation and retaliation.

Light, who was ousted as chair earlier in the year before reclaiming the gavel Monday after Heather Quaas-Annsa resigned from the board, said he doesn’t have an estimate of when the agreement will be finalized. But he said the board will vote on it in an open public meeting. Whether the details of the agreement will be made public, however, is unclear to Light.

“I would be in favor of as much transparency as possible, but ultimately it’s up to the attorneys on both sides,” he said.

After the agreement is finalized and Hamilton formally resigns, the board will either appoint an acting superintendent who will take up Hamilton’s duties until the board finds an interim superintendent, or immediately start the search for an interim superintendent.

Acting and interim superintendents traditionally come from within a district, Light said. Finding a new superintendent to replace Hamilton long-term will likely take about a year, Light said, meaning the new leader would probably start in July 2027.

Calls for transparency, fresh leadership

During Springfield Public Schools’ year of upheaval, parents, teachers and community members have been critical of a lack of transparency from the administration and how it has responded to public disapproval.

The board has spent hours in closed executive sessions during the past school year, discussing complaints, legal advice and an investigation that the public was not privy to. Community members have also been told not to make public comments in board meetings about open investigations, citing liability concerns.

And teachers and families were recently surprised by a mid-school-year decision to lay off of 27 teachers due to past budgeting decisions by the board and district.

The Community Alliance for Public Education, an advocacy group in the Eugene-Springfield area focused on public education, led the charge in public participation at Springfield school board meetings this year. The group, better known as CAPE, also publicly supported Light after district administrators effectively removed him from board leadership in November.

District leaders complained Light went over their heads to ask state officials about a dragged-out curriculum investigation, while Light argued he wasn’t getting answers from the district.

The subsequent leak of the complaint against Light led to public outrage and more district complaints against board members. Larry Lewin and Roscoe Caron, two of CAPE’s founders, said the superintendent’s subsequent threat of a lawsuit wasn’t completely surprising due to what they had already seen and characterized as “intimidation tactics.”

“The superintendent was exploring new and novel ways to shut down discussion about the issue, the real issue at hand … Are the children getting the education they deserve, a well-rounded education?” Caron said. “And it seemed like anybody who questioned it was in the sights of the district.”

Sara Thornton, a Springfield Public Schools parent and Hamlin Middle School PTSO vice president, said besides the district newsletter, she didn’t get a lot of direct communication from Hamilton during his nearly six years as superintendent.

“I think Springfield Public Schools, for multiple reasons, is in a very tricky hard place right now, and I think some fresh new leadership is maybe what our district needs,” she said. “People that are going to move us forward — I mean, it’s all about the kids, right — so being in touch with what’s actually happening in the classrooms.”

Lewin said since the exit of Nancy Golden, a former superintendent in Springfield, the pendulum of power has swung heavily toward the superintendent with not a lot of room for board members to question decisions. He hopes the next leader of the district will work in partnership with the board — and the public.

“The board needs the superintendent’s educational and organizational expertise,” he said. “These are civilians who run for the school board. Some of them know education, some do, but most don’t. They need a CEO to run the show, but the ‘sup’ needs the board to connect to the community that elected them. That’s what CAPE wants.”