Hamilton Southeastern Schools board members have accepted the resignation of superintendent Dr. Yvonne Stokes.
The school board unanimously approved the resignation and separation agreement during an emergency meeting at 7 a.m. Wednesday.
Stokes
“I am grateful to HSE and the Fishers and Noblesville communities for my time here,” Dr. Stokes in a written statement released by the district. “The opportunity to serve as superintendent was one I never took lightly. As this shift in leadership commences, I am committed to supporting the district and feel confident that our staff, students, and families will be in capable hands. The future is bright for HSE.”
The school board attorney announced that Dr. Stokes’ attorney approached the district approximately two weeks ago to discuss her resignation.
The district agreed to pay Dr. Stokes the full amount of her salary for this year, the final year of her contract with the district.
Dr. Stokes will also receive payment for unused sick time and has agreed to not sue the district.
Lang
“I want to express our profound thanks to Dr. Stokes and her leadership during this time,” Lang said in a statement read at the end of the meeting. “This is a crucial time during our district’s history and we are so grateful for her service and dedication to our district.”
Two board members who voted to approve the resignation and separation agreement said they did not agree with the process, but voted yes to respect Dr. Stokes’ wishes to step down.
The HSE board’s work in 2023 has been dominated by contentious discussions about the role of diversity, equity and inclusion in schools, a grant for mental health services, and the non-renewal of several administrator contracts.
One parent at the meeting criticized the role of newly elected board members in the superintendent’s resignation.
“The truth is Dr. Stokes was not wanted by you before you were elected,” Stephanie Hunt said in her comments. “You even shamed her by moving her to the end of the table and essentially silenced her and disrespected her. We saw it. It wasn’t some sly move on your part.”
Kegley
Board members appointed Matt Kegley, assistant superintendent for teaching and learning, as the school district’s interim superintendent. The district also approved a two-year contract extension for Kegley, who has 17 years of experience within the district.
Dr. Kegley, who will be appointed as interim superintendent, joined HSE in 2006 as an assistant principal at HSE High School. Over the next several years, he assumed roles as a high school principal and the executive director for secondary education before assuming the assistant superintendent role in January 2021.
“The last few years have presented several challenges for our school community,” said Dr. Kegley. “However, with challenge comes the opportunity to learn and grow. I’m humbled by HSE’s trust in me to lead in this interim period and am looking forward to having open conversations with our board, administration, staff, students and families to identify a path that will bring us all together.”
As Kegley takes the interim helm, the school board and district leadership will begin preparations to implement a comprehensive search for a permanent superintendent within the next several months.
Stokes joined the Fishers-based school district in April 2021 after serving as assistant superintendent for Munster schools. She replaced Superintendent Allen Bourff, who retired at the end of the 2020-2021 school year.
More than 1,000 community members had signed a petition calling for Bourff to step down after he sent a letter to faculty in February 2021 outlining how to address the Black Lives Matter movement in district classrooms.
At the time of her hiring, Stokes said, “Please don’t fret about academic excellence. We’re here to make sure that our students have academic excellence.”
WISH-TV’s Brady Gibson contributed to this story.