Eagle County Schools, Superintendent Ramirez agree to ‘part ways’

Eagle County Schools Wednesday night announced an amicable parting of the ways with Superintendent Dr. Carlos Ramirez after less than a year.

Ramirez was named to position in March of 2018. Here’s an email alert sent out Wednesday night by Eagle County Schools:

Dear families and staff of Eagle County Schools,

At tonight’s Board of Education meeting, Eagle County Schools and Dr. Ramirez amicably elected to part ways, citing incompatible management and leadership styles.

For more information, please open the attached letters or go to eagleschools.net.

BOE Letter Final (Bilingual).pdf 

Dr. Ramirez Letter Final (Bilingual).pdf 

Here’s the Board of Education letter:

Dear families and staff of Eagle County Schools,

At tonight’s Board of Education meeting, Eagle County Schools and Dr. Ramirez amicably elected to part ways, citing incompatible management and leadership styles. The Board of Education will name an Interim Superintendent in the coming weeks and begin a Superintendent search immediately. In the meantime, the district leadership team will ensure smooth operations, with continued emphasis on quality learning experiences for our students.

The Board and Dr. Ramirez have been working to resolve the differences in approach since October. Efforts were made by both sides to arrive at a common approach, but ultimately both parties agreed that a mutual separation was in everyone’s best interest.

“We were disappointed to learn that Dr. Ramirez was not a good fit and thank him for his contributions to the district during his tenure,” explained Board of Education President Kate Cocchiarella. “Sometimes, things just don’t work out. Dr. Ramirez joined our dynamic and progressive district and wanted to change practices in accordance with what had worked for him at larger, urban districts, but we wanted him to lead within the boundaries of our community-developed strategic plan. Each party had the best intentions of our students at heart, but ultimately our approaches simply did not mesh.”

Eagle County Schools is guided by its strategic plan, which includes school-based plans that chart the direction of individual schools. “We have confidence in our principals and staff to remain focused on providing the best possible learning environments for students. Our leadership team is quite capable of managing the district during this transition,” Cocchiarella added.

“We wish Dr. Ramirez well and he wishes the district the best,” said Board Vice President Tessa Kirchner. “Though it didn’t work out, it has ended well, allowing us both to pursue better fits.”

Eagle County Schools and Dr. Ramirez have agreed to the mutual termination of his employment relationship with the district pursuant to article 17.1 of his employment agreement with a severance payment of $195,000, plus six months of COBRA.

The Board of Education has learned from this experience that the school district needs a leader who is more of a facilitator. The community-developed strategic plan already defines the district’s theory of improvement and is at the stage of needing a leader who can enable deeper engagement with the plan and our instructional practices.

Please direct questions to our leadership staff (principals, department leads, district office staff) and join us in thanking Dr. Ramirez and his family for the many positive contributions he made during his tenure.

Sincerely,

Kate Cocchiarella, Board President

And here’s the Ramirez letter:

Dear Eagle County Learning Community,

It is with regret that I inform you that I will no longer be serving as Superintendent of Eagle County Schools. The Board of Education and I agreed to a mutual separation this evening at the board meeting. My educational philosophy has been, and will always be, student and teacher centered. I believe this is the essence of our work as educators and why I have committed twenty-eight years of my life to public education, and will continue to do so.

Since May, I have had the wonderful opportunity to get to know outstanding educators, community members, deeply committed parents, and amazing students. I am so proud of what we have accomplished during the time I have been here serving Eagle County schools.

Together, we have begun the process of establishing a dynamic, multi-tiered student support system, which will support the academic and social emotional needs of our students. We have built bridges with county and other community-based organizations to support this important work. We have been building, from the ground up, a robust data dashboard, which will support teachers and administrators with multiple data points to inform instruction and meet the needs of students. We have been conducting a complete policy overhaul to ensure that our work is current and meets the needs of our organization.

Teachers will always hold a special place in my heart for the collective impact they make on students and families. Thank you for your continued work and commitment. You are making a difference.

As I leave you, I want to express my profound appreciation for your love and support of me and my family. We will always hold you in our hearts.

Sincerely,

Dr. Carlos Ramirez