School superintendent announces retirement

After seven years at the helm of the Long Beach School District, School Superintendent Dr. Robert Greenberg has announced that he will retire at the end of the school year. His last official day in the position will be June 30.

Greenberg announced his retirement at the Dec. 7 Board of Education meeting, and explained afterward that he will submit his resignation at the Jan. 11 board meeting for the board to officially approve.

Several members of the community thanked Greenberg at the last board meeting and expressed their gratitude and admiration for his work in the district.

“I think you are solely responsible for putting our district in the monetary place that it is now,” said Lynn Gergen, the former school board president. “We will be at a loss when you leave. But we will also be in a better condition than most districts across the state.”

Board of Education President Dr. Dennis Ryan also lauded Greenberg’s work in the district.

“A large part of [our] fiscal health is attributable to Dr. Greenberg,” said Ryan. “He’s been very responsible. Besides being an educational leader, he’s been very mindful of the economy, and putting us on a good bearing.”

Greenberg described his experience as superintendent as “the best job in the world,” and said he was grateful for the handful of individuals who came forward to thank him. “It re-affirmed the reason why I really love working here,” he said. “The people are great.”

Greenberg said he felt that his decision to retire was the right time to do so.

“The district is in pretty good shape in terms of moving forward with student achievement,” said Greenberg.

Trustee Roy Lester said Greenberg has done an “absolutely tremendous job” in the district, and said he will be missed.

“I don’t know how we’re going to replace him,” said Lester. “I think it’s a tremendous loss to the district. I’ve never met a superintendent as attuned to the financial realities of running a district.”

School officials said that during his time in office, he has managed to keep the district financially healthy.

“Both the percentage increase in the budget and the levy has decreased each year,” he said, adding the district is financially sound.

Greenberg said he was proud of his accomplishments in the district, and cited several achievements, including the passage of a $92.7 million school preservation plan, to be funded by a bond that was approved by voters last year. The project includes $28.7 million earmarked for building upgrades and renovations at the high school.

“We passed a bond of $98 million during the worst recession in recent memory,” said Greenberg.

Greenberg will be leaving before the completion of several projects, such as the construction of a multi-purpose football field at Long Beach High School, an often contentious issue in which residents both criticized and supported Greenberg for his support of the project. Greenberg said that overall, he is proud of his work in Long Beach, and cited the implementation of a foreign language program in elementary schools as another major success in the district.

“We [also] re-organized the district,” Greenberg added. “We now have K- 12 district coordinators instead of building-based chairs who did not have a K-12 perspective. The district has now produced K-12 curriculums that had not existed before.”

“We’ve made a lot of progress and put a lot of programs in place,” said Greenberg. “I think we need to continue to be mindful of all the pressures of public education.”

Greenberg cited state mandated tests as an example, which he said “narrows the curriculum and opportunity for student learning” and is an “economic burden on schools and the taxpayer.”

Greenberg said he was unaware as to whether the board is currently seeking a replacement for the superintendent position. He said, however, that he is confident the board would find a suitable replacement and praised the current administration.

“We have a good staff assembled,” he said. “The stars are lined up in the right order.”

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