The superintendent seat at Tucson Unified School District will remain vacant for now, as the governing board tabled a vote on naming an interim.
The board was scheduled to name an interim superintendent Tuesday night at Duffy Community Center, 5145 E. Fifth St. However, the discussion was tabled because there were more than 20 names suggested by board members, said Board President Michael Hicks.
βThe board has actively and collectively worked together to narrow down our choices,β Hicks said. Though he wouldnβt specify how many, he said the number of candidates being considered for interim superintendent has become more βmanageable.β
H.T. Sanchez, who served as superintendent since 2013, resigned the post last week after a weekslong effort by some governing board members to remove him.
Sanchez walked away with $200,000 in severance pay. He was paid a base salary of $270,000, according to his most recent contract for the 2016-2017 school year. That figure does not include benefits and bonuses.
His contract would have been up for renewal in June 2018 if he hadnβt resigned. His exit first became a topic for the governing board when Rachael Sedgwick, a new board member, asked to review his contract.
Sedgwick previously told the Star that she had first intended to put him on a performance plan.
However, after weeks of discussions behind closed doors in executive sessions or private meetings with an outside attorney who was not working for the district at the time, Sanchez resigned.
Two senior district administrators have announced that they will retire or resign since Sanchezβs resignation. Anna Maiden, the districtβs chief human resources officer, will resign effective June 30. Karla Soto, the chief financial officer, will retire April 30, but a district spokeswoman said Soto will return through an outsourcing company.
The interim superintendent would oversee 86 schools in the city.
