HAILEY — Blaine County School District’s embattled superintendent plans to step down when her contract ends at the end of next school year.
GwenCarol Holmes announced her pending resignation as a postscript to an email to district staff Monday.
“P.S. So you hear it from me first, I have notified the Board of Trustees that I plan to step down as Superintendent of BCSD on June 30, 2021,” Holmes wrote.
The announcement follows a tumultuous summer for the district—and for Holmes, who surfaced as a defendant in a civil rights case filed by two former Blaine County students last April. In June, local critics gathered over a thousand signatures for an online petition seeking Holmes’ ouster for allegedly creating a culture of fear.
Holmes rounded out Monday’s announcement with praise for the district and a pledge to staff. “I promise you that for the next 14 months, I will be all in as we continue to work together to fulfill the promise to all our students.”
Holmes is Idaho’s highest paid superintendent, with a salary of $180,208.
Blaine County trustees hired Holmes as superintendent in 2014. She previously worked as chief academic officer of public schools in Alexandria, Va.
