During a special meeting at the end of February, the Council Rock school board approved in a vote of 6-3 an “amicable separation agreement” with Superintendent Dr. Robert Fraser, who requested a medical leave of absence in January. The reasoning of the separation has yet to be released. Meanwhile, Substitute Superintendent Dr. Susan Elliott will continue in her leadership capacity.
The members who voted “yes” were Michael Thorwart, Joseph Hidalgo, Ed Salamon, Michael Roosevelt, Bob Hickey and Kristin Marcell. The “no” votes were Ed Tate, Mariann McKee and Yota Palli, the latter of whom described the situation as “perplexing,” especially since Fraser, who was hired seven years ago, was only in the second year of a new five-year contract.
“I have received many questions from my constituents about what really happened and why he’s leaving,” she said. “I was advised against speaking about it, but we all owe much more transparency to our constituents and to the reputation of our school district.”
In Palli’s opinion, the separation is related to Fraser’s support of erring on the side of caution throughout the COVID-19 pandemic and following CDC guidelines. She added, “The majority of this board disagrees with the advice of health experts regarding COVID measures.”
Samantha Bambino can be reached at sbambino@newspapermediagroup.com
