Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools Superintendent Neil Pedersen is scheduled to appear before the board of education today (Thursday), and there has been speculation that he will announce his retirement.
Stephanie Knott, assistant to the superintendent for community relations, confirmed Pedersen would make an announcement, but would not say what the announcement would be.
Pedersen is the longest-serving superintendent in the district’s 100-year history and the longest-serving superintendent currently working in North Carolina, with 17 years at the helm of Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools. He has overseen tremendous growth in the district, with the construction of six new schools during his tenure, and was named Superintendent of the Year in 2001 by the North Carolina Association of School Administrators.
Before becoming superintendent, Pedersen served as the district’s assistant superintendent for support services. Prior to his work in Chapel Hill-Carrboro, Pedersen worked in school districts in Dayton, Ohio and Richmond and Portsmouth, Va.
The board will meet tonight at 7 at the Lincoln Center on Merritt Mill Road.
– Susan Dickson