Moffett's departure raises questions
Ken Moffett's sudden resignation this week from his post as Pleasant Valley School District interim superintendent leaves a number of questions and few answers.

The most pressing question seems to be why he left so abruptly. Neither Moffett nor school district officials have given an answer.

Moffett's departure comes nearly a month before the end of the school year and without a successor being named. When he was hired at the start of the school year he was expected to stay until a replacement had been found.

Moffett took the temporary assignment knowing the school district was faced with continuing problems. "I'm just anxious to help," Moffett said soon after he was hired, "because there are some big issues."

Those issues included contract negotiations with the teachers union and the Service Employees International Union, the pending school closures forced by declining enrollment, and the ongoing battle for district unification.

District officials probably recognized Moffett wasn't going to have much of an impact on unification, but his temporary status made him the right candidate to help the school district deal with its most pressing problem- campus closures.

Moffett was the one who suggested closing three schools to save the $1.5 million needed to pay for teachers' raises. The recommendation, although highly unpopular, was necessary. It freed the money needed for the raises and gave the district a chance to replenish its bank account.

Although the school board vacillated on which schools to close and which programs to move- which raised the ire of both parents and teachers- its final vote in March put the debate to rest.

Perhaps Moffett left the school district because the problem he was asked to handle had been solved. But it still leaves us wondering why he left before a replacement could be found.

Was he so frustrated with the school board that he stayed as long as he could? Or was he tired of facing angry parents and frustrated teachers? Maybe it was both.

Every school superintendent has difficult problems to face. Moffett knew that. He'd held the top spot at a number of school districts and for 20 years he was superintendent of the Lennox Elementary School District.

The answer of why Moffett left will likely never be fully revealed. Which begs a whole new question- who will replace him?

We'd like to find out sooner rather than later.