Huber Heights board accepts superintendent’s resignation

“The timing of my resignation on the heels of a challenging board meeting is purely coincidental; unfortunate timing, I apologize.”

Credit: Contributed

Credit: Contributed

HUBER HEIGHTS - The Board of Education accepted the resignation of Superintendent Mario Basora on Thursday night, after Basora announced he will take another job outside of the public education sector. Basora’s last day will be Feb. 2.

The district has not chosen who will succeed Basora as superintendent but said more details are coming soon.

Basora said he had heard from hundreds of people wishing him well and asking him to stay since he made the announcement on Wednesday. He has been with the district for two and a half years.

“So my heart is heavy right now,” Basora said. “I feel a lot of love and please know that I definitely love you all back.”

He joked that leaving the district felt like breaking up with 6,650 people at the same time.

Basora said he had long been interested in working in the private sector and found the right opportunity, which was why he was leaving. In his resignation letter, Basora said the COVID-19 pandemic was a small part of why he chose to leave and cited “a desire for my family to reach financial independence at an earlier age in my career” as part of his thought process.

He addressed speculation that the Board of Education had driven him out.

“The timing of my resignation on the heels of a challenging board meeting is purely coincidental; unfortunate timing, I apologize. Please do not read anything into this and please do not blame the Board of Education,” Basora said.

The Huber Heights board voted four to one to accept the resignation, with member Mark Combs the only dissenting vote.

“I’m actually going to vote no, because I have confidence in him,” Combs said. “I would love for him to stay.”

Multiple board members said they believed Basora always had the best interests of the students at heart, even when they disagreed with him. Every member of the board of education wished Basora well and Basora individually praised each of the members of the board.

“They are all very good people with certain hearts for serving only to make humor schools the best district they can make,” Basora said. “Remember that they’re human just like the rest of us.”

Basora was previously the superintendent of the Yellow Springs school district for nine years.

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