MARYSVILLE, Wash. — The troubled Marysville School District has new leadership tonight.
The school board held a special meeting on Thursday night and named a new interim superintendent, Dr. Dave Burgess.
Dr. Burgess, the former Lake Stevens School District Superintendent was introduced and took a few minutes to address the crowd, before receiving an ovation from the crowd.
The board earlier said the purpose of the meeting was to lay out an “amicable separation” between the district and the outgoing superintendent, Dr. Zachary Robbins, who had the job for two years.
Many in the Marysville School District community are pleased with this move. They blame Dr. Robbins for much of what has gone wrong financially with the district, which at one point, claimed a $28 million deficit, and back in August was placed under “enhanced financial oversight.”
Burgess says he’s got a tough challenge ahead, but he’s up for it.
Dr. Burgess says he will stay on through this school year, but that anything after that would need further discussion.
The board says a change in leadership was needed, and while they would not comment on the severance package for Dr. Robbins, that information is expected to come out in a later statement.