Board votes to accept resignation
Likely to appoint an
interim superintendent
during search
ABERDEEN — The Matawan-Aberdeen Regional Board of Education voted last week to accept the resignation of district Superintendent of Schools Michael Klavon.
Klavon announced earlier this month that he would be leaving the district for a post in the state Department of Education as the director of innovative programs.
In his new position, Klavon will oversee charter schools, magnet schools, career academies and other programs around the state.
The superintendent, who had just over a year left on his contract, said he expects his last day of work to be May 31.
Klavon, who has been at the helm of the school district for eight years, is a 25-year veteran of the Matawan-Aberdeen Regional school district.
School board officials said that they expect the search for a permanent replacement to run the district to take approximately four to six months.
After preliminary discussions about using a private search firm, the board voted at a special meeting Thursday to use the N.J. School Boards Association as its search agent throughout the process.
"We have to get on the stick and get going here," school board President Gerald Donaghue said Monday.
"We have a lot on our plate right now. We have to address the budget, and we have to deal with this," added Donaghue.
The proposed 2002-03 budget was defeated by almost a 2-1 margin April 16 and was referred to the Matawan and Aberdeen municipal governing bodies for review and possible cuts.
"We need to get moving on this quickly and get somebody in there," said board Vice President Catherine Zavor-skas.
Zavorskas also said that the board is looking at having a public meeting before the end of the school year, at which the community could give some input into the process.
With the end of the month fast approaching, school officials also decided that they will bring in an interim superintendent to head up the district until a thorough search for a permanent replacement can be completed.
According to Donaghue, the decision to use an outsider or tap one of the current administrators to handle the duties, has not yet been decided by the district.
"That is something that we are going to have to sit down and discuss," added Donaghue.