Embattled superintendent stepping down, accepts new job out of state
LAWRENCE » After the teachers union expressed “no confidence” in her leadership, Lawrence Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Crystal M. Edwards will soon leave the district for greener pastures down south.
With students and staff gearing up for winter recess, Edwards delivered a pre-Christmas announcement this week revealing she will retire from Lawrence Public Schools effective June 1, 2018, to begin working for another district out of state.
Upon retirement, Edwards and her husband Brian will move to Lynchburg, Virginia, where she will serve the community as superintendent of Lynchburg City Schools, according to the news release that Edwards’ office emailed at 9:19 p.m. Friday.
Edwards, a longtime educator, has served as superintendent of Lawrence Public Schools since September 2011. The Trentonian on Saturday contacted her asking whether her pending departure has anything to do with the Lawrence Township Education Association’s recent vote of “no confidence” in her leadership.
“My decision was based on what is best for my family,” Edwards said Saturday night via email. “My husband and I are looking forward to moving closer to our oldest daughter in Virginia and his parents in North Carolina.”
The embattled superintendent has also acknowledged her pending retirement on Twitter and gave the following statement to Lynchburg City Schools: “I am excited to join the Lynchburg educational family and work with the talented staff, engaged community and supportive school board to continue to pursue and achieve excellence for our children, staff and families.”
The Lawrence teachers union, also known as the LTEA, in September 2016 publicly announced that 86 percent of its membership had registered a vote of no confidence in the leadership of Edwards. Hoping to inspire changes in the district, the LTEA drafted a letter dated May 26, 2016, explaining its vote of no confidence.
The highly critical letter alleges that Edwards had a lack of concern that “compromised curriculum standards that affect our students’ ability to succeed” and further alleges that “Edwards’ general unwillingness to work cooperatively with not just the LTEA, but with the staff creates a climate of hostility, fear, and — in many instances — creates the perception that she is only interested in achieving the goals set forth in her personal contract.”
“Under Dr. Edwards, district facilities are falling into disrepair,” the LTEA letter further alleges. “Older district school buildings do not provide adequate educational amenities. In addition to
cramped classrooms and a lack of communal space for educators and students, there are perennial issues with insects, mold, mildew, broken air conditioners, leaking roofs, leaky plumbing, leaking windows, leaking heaters, damaged floors, run down offices and an overall lack of capital improvements. Repairs are frequently quick fixes that require attention within a few months.”
Edwards weathered the storm without ever publicly shaming the LTEA. Kevin Van Hise, president of the Lawrence Township Board of Education, last year declared that the school board had “full and complete confidence in and support Dr. Edwards as the leader of the district” and said the school board authorized “an in-depth investigation” of the LTEA’s letter “to determine if there is merit to any of the claims asserted.”
The LTEA was not completely off base when it cited problems with Lawrence Public Schools infrastructure. Edwards recommended the school board in August to approve a proposed referendum that will allow Lawrence voters to decide whether the district shall make $25 million in security and infrastructure improvements at all seven schools in the district. Voters will decide in a special election on Jan. 23, 2018, whether to approve the $25 million school-improvement referendum. With nearly 600 members, the LTEA is the largest of three unions that represent Lawrence Township Public Schools employees. The Lawrence school board in September accepted Edwards’ recommendation to give pay raises to LTEA members. The board of education and LTEA agreed to a Memorandum of Agreement that gave educators, child study team members, custodians, buildings and grounds staff, secretaries, nurses and guidance counselors a 2.75 percent salary increase for the current schoolyear retroactive to July 1. LTEA members will also receive a subsequent 2.75 percent salary increase next summer and a 2.8 percent salary increase in the 2019-20 schoolyear under the agreement, according to district officials.
‘Awesome educator’
Edwards formally submitted her retirement intent to school board President Van Hise on Wednesday. Then the Lynchburg City School Board on Thursday issued a news release announcing it will hire Edwards as the 13th superintendent of Lynchburg City Schools, ending its five-month national search for a well-qualified schools chief. “The school board is honored that Dr. Edwards will be assuming this critical leadership position for the City of Lynchburg,” Lynchburg School Board Chairman Michael Nilles said in the news release. “Her career in public education has been marked by a steady rise of taking on increasing responsibilities and improving academic achievement for students from all backgrounds and economic circumstances. Public education in Lynchburg faces a complex combination of fiscal, educational and social challenges. The board expects continued improvement in school accreditation and student achievement under Dr. Edwards’ stewardship.” New Jersey’s loss is Virginia’s gain. Dr. Scott Rocco, superintendent of the Hamilton Township School District, on Friday morning sent a tweet saying Lynchburg City Schools is “getting an awesome educator and superintendent” and congratulated Edwards on her new appointment, saying, “We will miss you!” Public records show Edwards has been a longtime New Jersey public schools educator since 1987. She currently earns $167,500 per year as the Lawrence Public Schools superintendent, according to active pension records. It is not immediately clear what her salary will be when she begins working as the Lynchburg schools superintendent. Upon retirement, Edwards will presumably collect a New Jersey pension while working full-time in Virginia. Edwards is a married mother of five kids and has amassed a 30-year professional career working as a teacher, coach, supervisor, assistant superintendent, and superintendent in New Jersey. Her roots in the Garden State are further reflected in the fact she received a master’s degree in chemistry from Rutgers University and a doctorate in education leadership, management and policy from Seton Hall University, according to her office. The Lawrence school board is expected to formally accept Edwards’ retirement when it meets Jan. 10, 2018. Her retirement date is listed as June 1, 2018, but her current contract with Lawrence Public Schools expires on June 30, 2020. Edwards’ decision to retire with two years remaining on her contract suggests she had been looking to work elsewhere in the aftermath of the LTEA’s vote of no confidence. The Trentonian was the first news organization to report on the no-confidence vote last year.