Board votes 5-4 not to renew the superintendent's contract

What happened

On September 15, 2026 the board added an item to its agenda and then voted, five to four, not to renew Superintendent Dr. Eric Hibbs's contract, and to send him formal notice of the non-renewal under the state law that governs superintendent contracts. Because most board members are legally conflicted out of anything to do with the superintendent, the board first had to invoke the Doctrine of Necessity - a rule that lets a conflicted board act when there is no other way to get a decision made - limited to the superintendent items on that night's agenda.

Why it matters to families

The superintendent runs the district day to day, so a change at the top affects every school. The district will now have to run a superintendent search, which residents at the following meeting asked the board to cost out, and the leader who drove the district's energy-savings programme and its preschool expansion is on notice to leave.

The evidence

The district's own recording of the September 15, 2026 meeting captures the motion being read into the agenda, the board attorney explaining that a yes vote means the contract is not renewed and notice will be given, the Doctrine of Necessity being narrowed to the superintendent items, and a roll call carrying five to four. At the September 22 meeting residents and staff spoke on both sides of the decision and the teachers' association president questioned how the discussion had been handled.

The source