Superintendent finalist resigns post

MIDDLETOWN — Mansfield City Schools Superintendent Lloyd Martin, one of three finalists for the Middletown City School District’s top job, will resign Tuesday, Jan. 5, the Mansfield News Journal reported.

The paper reported that Martin told Mansfield schools spokesman Larry Gibbs by phone that he would terminate his contract, which was through 2012. His salary was $118,230 for the 2008-09 school year, according to the News Journal.

The Middletown Board of Education announced earlier this month that the finalists for the superintendent position are Martin; Greg Rasmussen, assistant superintendent of Wichita Public Schools in Wichita, Kan.; and Robert D. Sommers, who leads Butler Technology and Career Development Schools.

Middletown school board member Chris Fiora said Wednesday night, Dec. 30, he had not heard about Martin’s resignation, and that as far as he knew, Martin was still scheduled to attend a “Meet the Candidates” night next week.

Fiora said he had “absolutely no thoughts right now” on Martin’s resignation and that he had “no idea why that occurred.”

None of the other board members returned calls seeking comment Wednesday.

A “Meet the Candidates” night has been set for 5 p.m. Jan. 7, at Middletown High School, during which time the three finalists are to present information about themselves and answer three questions posed by a facilitator. The audience also will have a chance to rate the candidates, school officials said.

Martin, the lone minority candidate, has been serving as superintendent of Mansfield City Schools since 2007, where he has helped pass two levies in his short time with the nearly 4,000-student district, which had not passed any for 13 years prior.

He also has been involved in his share of controversy during his tenure, according to Mansfield school board member-elect Lowell Smith. “It’s been rough going here,” Smith said previously. “I never once said I wanted to fire Dr. Martin, but several other candidates said things like that during the campaign.”

Eight out of 10 candidates for Mansfield’s Board of Education said removing Martin from office would help fix the school district, which had an “academic watch” rating last year, according to articles published in the Mansfield News Journal.

Martin has said that many community members were having difficulty accepting “out-of-the-box, non-traditional thinking.”

“That’s the sad irony of this community,” Martin said. “If you talk with people who have actually worked with me they’d tell you we’ve been very effective at getting things done for children, but they want to hold on to things of the past.

“When people are out to hurt and destroy you, they make up all types of things that may be ... unfounded,” he said.

Martin said he thinks Middletown is ready to reach the “next level of achievement,” saying under his guidance the district could transition from continuous improvement to effective “in a short time.”

The Middletown superintendent finalists were selected from a pool of more than 60 “well-qualified” applicants, according to the board. Carney, Sandoe & Associates, a Boston-based consulting firm hired by the district, conducted the nationwide search and performed an initial screening of all applicants.

The job became open after former superintendent Steve Price resigned this past summer. Former Middletown City Schools administrator Norris Brown is serving as the district’s interim superintendent.

Staff Writers Eric Robinette and Kevin Aldridge contributed to this report.