Columbus City Schools superintendent Talisa Dixon to retire at the end of academic year

Columbus City Schools Superintendent Talisa Dixon will retire as superintendent at the close of the current academic year, which ends June 30, 2023.

“It is with mixed emotions that I am officially announcing my intention to retire at the end of this school year," Dixon said Thursday in a nearly two-page letter to the Columbus City Schools community. "It was not an easy decision, but I knew it was time, and I am leaving with a full heart and an undeniable confidence in the CCS community moving forward.

"To all of our CCS students – you have always been my ‘why.’ I will forever be proud of your passion, resilience, and fortitude," Dixon said in her letter.

Columbus City School Board President Jennifer Adair thanked Dixon on behalf of the board for her contributions in the past four years.

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Dixon "has set the district up for success in the years to come with the implementation of a new Strategic Plan and the creation of our Portrait of a Graduate,” Adair said. “As both a former school principal and superintendent, Dr. Dixon has served this community well and remains a champion for the students and families we serve. We thank her for her steadfast dedication to Columbus City Schools and wish her the best in her future endeavors.”

More: Timeline: A look at Talisa Dixon's tenure as superintendent of Columbus City Schools

Some of Dixon's contributions listed by the district included leading the district through the COVID-19 pandemic, creating multiple departments within the administration, the opening of World Language Middle School, and a partnership with JPMorgan Chase that gave the district $7 million in grant money to help students find success after high school.

Adair said that despite the leadership change, the district’s work “will not stop or diminish.”

“Our dedicated teachers, administrators, and staff will continue to serve our students, their families, and our community,” said Adair. “The Board of Education remains committed to improving student outcomes and developing Portrait-ready graduates.”

The school board is expected to announce an interim superintendent as soon as next week, sources told The Dispatch.

It's not immediately clear who the interim superintendent will be, since the district's Deputy Superintendent of Operations David James will be leaving for a role as the new executive director of the Summit Education Institute according to The Akron Beacon Journal, a Gannett sister paper of The Dispatch.

Sources told The Dispatch that James' last day with Columbus schools will be on Dec. 31. James could not be reached for comment.

Dixon is only four months into her second three-year contract, which started Aug. 1 and is supposed to run through July 31, 2025. The Columbus City Schools Board of Education unanimously approved her current contract Feb. 25.

Dixon's contract states that it may be terminated for a handful of reasons, including "mutual agreement of the parties with 30 days advanced notice" and "upon voluntary resignation of the Superintendent, prior to the end of the contract term and the acceptance of the same by the Board."

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Dixon’s current annual salary is $262,520, an 8.5% increase from her last contract, which was $242,000, according to the district.

Her contract also includes such benefits as life insurance, with coverage of two times her salary, a $750-per-month car allowance, a $150 monthly technology allowance and 35 vacation days.

Talisa Dixon's background

Dixon began her career as a social studies teacher in Akron and then as assistant principal in Akron City Schools, where she worked for about six years before moving to work as a principal in Columbus City Schools for nine years at the now-closed Brookhaven High School and at Columbus Alternative High School.

In 2010, Dixon left Columbus City Schools to become deputy superintendent of instruction at Saginaw Public Schools in Michigan for four years. She was hired in 2014 as the superintendent of the Cleveland Heights-University Heights School District.

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After five years in Cleveland, Dixon was offered the Columbus City Schools superintendent position in 2018. Her contract was approved in February and she began her tenure there in March 2019.

A native of Oxford, Mississippi, Dixon received her bachelor's degree in sociology from Mississippi Valley State University and her three master's degrees in sociology, educational administration and secondary education and a doctorate degree in educational administration from the University of Akron.

COVID, CEA strike, busing issues among major events during Talisa Dixon tenure

Dixon led Columbus City Schools through the COVID-19 pandemic, which abruptly shuttered schools in March 2020. The district canceled in-person graduations for the Class of 2020 when most neighboring districts didn't. Dixon previously told The Dispatch that was one of the toughest decisions of her career, but she did it to keep families safe.

She also previously told The Dispatch in February 2021 that she regretted not communicating more often with families, especially during the uncertainty at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

"I didn't have a lot of answers. I was searching to find the answers," she said.

Dixon was superintendent when the Columbus Education Association — which represents 4,500 teachers, librarians, nurses, counselors and other professional employees — went on strike for three days in August as the school year started.

The union was asking for an increase in salaries, better heating and air conditioning as well as better overall school building conditions, smaller class sizes, more planning time for teachers and more full-time art, music and physical education teachers.

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The new three-year contract that was approved with Columbus City Schools includes a 4% raise each year, a contractual guarantee that all student learning areas will be climate-controlled no later than the start of the 2025-2026 school year, a paid parental leave program for teachers, reductions in class-size caps in all grade bands and the first-ever limitations on the numbers of buildings assigned to each elementary art, music and physical education teachers.

Columbus City Schools also has experienced busing issues with the new $1.5 million software system AlphaRoute the district purchased this year. AlphaRoute was supposed to more efficiently create bus routes but has instead caused headaches for students and parents.

In an attempt to fix the problem, the district is using two software routing systems — Versatrans software by Tyler Technologies is the primary routing software and AlphaRoute.

Columbus City Schools is making major changes to busing in January after winter break that are expected result in new routes, drivers, and pickup and drop-off times for nearly all district students as well as charter and nonpublic students who rely on the district for transportation.

Talisa Dixon helped start initiatives including the Columbus Promise

Dixon has announced various initiatives and partnerships with local community organizations and colleges during her time as the superintendent.

Some of these included in 2021 the announcement of the start of the Columbus Promise, a program where Columbus City Schools seniors could attend Columbus State Community College tuition-free.

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The inaugural group of Columbus Promise students totaled 629 this semester – slightly more than double the number of Columbus City Schools students who graduated and directly enrolled at Columbus State last year.

“This will allow college to become reality for many students,” Dixon said when the Columbus Promise was first announced in November 2021. “Especially when you are talking about removing one of the biggest hurdles: tuition.”

Columbus City Schools developed a Portrait of Graduate in December 2019 which focuses on equipping every student in these areas: adaptability, communication, creativity, critical thinking, global empathy and technology.

Dixon also was involved in the STEAMM Rising initiative — a partnership with the city of Columbus, Ohio State University, Columbus State Community College and the district that helps prepare Columbus students for careers in science, technology, engineering, art, math and medicine.

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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus City Schools superintendent Talisa Dixon to retire