Warren Supt. Hellweg is out

WARREN

Warren Board of Education has accepted the resignation and retirement of Superintendent Kathryn Hellweg, effective Monday.

Board President Kevin Stringer, who along with other board members commended Hellweg for her work on instruction, building projects and finances, said tonight that the resignation was her idea.

Hellweg, Stringer and Treasurer Angela Lewis signed Hellweg’s separation agreement earlier today. It pays her about $55,000 to buy out the last five months of her contract and about $46,000 more in separation pay and unused vacation.

The board accepted her resignation 5-0.

Lewis and Associate Superintendent Loree Richardson will run the district until a new superintendent has been hired, Stringer said.

Hellweg has been under scrutiny by the board and some in the community since at least late 2009 when she received a lukewarm approval rating in her board evaluation.

Among the issues was the district’s failure to improve its state report card rating of academic watch, the ranking next to the bottom.

The board gave her a score of 2 out of 3 on improving student achievement, and 2.1 of 3 for her relationship with the board, and wrote that it hoped for a “more open climate both internally and externally” in 2010.

The board suggested that she devise a “better mechanism for dealing with controversial issues ... rather than creating the adversarial relationship [with the public] we have now.”

In more recent months, Hellweg came under fire from the citizens group, Citizens for Educational Reform, which urged the board to get rid of her quickly so a new superintendent could be in place for the 2011-12 school year.

For the complete story, read Wednesday's Vindicator or Vindy.com.