Superintendent of Schools Dr. Richard Katz has resigned from the top administrative post in the East Windsor Regional School District, less than three years after he was appointed to the position in September 2015.
In a letter to parents announcing his decision to resign, Katz wrote that “for personal reasons, I have decided not to continue as superintendent and have accepted a position elsewhere as a director of human resources.
“The time I have served the East Windsor Regional School District has been extremely rewarding both personally and professionally,” Katz wrote in the letter, which was dated June 21 and posted on the school district’s website.
“I tremendously value the relationships we have built and the great educational advancements we have realized,” he wrote, adding he was confident the children’s current quality of educational experiences “will continue to blossom under the future leadership and sustained efforts” of the school district staff.
In its own statement on the website and posted above Katz’s letter to parents, the Board of Education wrote, “Yesterday, the board was surprised and saddened to receive Dr. Katz’s letter of resignation.
“We respect his reasons for deciding to leave both our district and the job of superintendent, but regret his decision and we will miss his leadership,” the board wrote, noting that Katz had made “many significant contributions.”
During Katz’s tenure in the school district, the board wrote, he implemented full-day kindergarten, increased the emphasis on the whole child, and reconfigured the elementary schools. The four elementary schools will be reconfigured into two K-2 schools and two 3-5 schools in September.
Katz will continue to work with district administrators over the summer “to ensure a smooth roll-out of the 2018-19 school year. We accept his resignation and will miss him,” the board wrote.
School board President Alice Weisman said the board will likely discuss its next steps in finding a replacement for Katz at the July 9 meeting.
“Our first priority is getting an interim superintendent in place for September,” Weisman said.
Katz was hired in September 2015. He had served as the superintendent of schools in the Saddle Brook public school district in Bergen County.
Katz earned a bachelor’s degree from Ohio State University, a master’s degree in education administration from Montclair State University and a doctorate in education from Rutgers University.
He began his career as a teacher, and later served as vice principal at the elementary school and middle school levels in the Ringwood and South Orange-Maplewood public school districts.