Grand Rapids — Superintendent Leadriane Roby will conclude her tenure with Grand Rapids Public Schools at the end of her current contract term in June 2027, and the board of education is considering how to move forward with finding a replacement.
At the conclusion of Monday’s school board meeting, Board President José Rodriguez mentioned that the district would soon start looking into firms to help with the impending search. The comment drew a flurry of media attention, but GRPS Communications Director Luke Stier said Roby has been planning to exit the district since February, when the board approved a one-year extension of Roby’s contract, at her request.
Stier said the following comment, made by Roby at the time, signaled her plans to leave the district in 2027: “I am honored to keep building on this momentum as we prepare for a strong handoff to our next superintendent, so this progress continues without interruption.”
District administration declined to comment further, but Rodriguez confirmed to SNN that the board has indeed been aware of Roby’s plans to leave the district since contract discussions took place earlier this year.
“It wasn’t unexpected at all,” Rodriguez said of Roby’s planned exit. “It’s always kind of been the plan since we started talking about it.”
Rodriguez said the board has discussed the matter at board retreats and work sessions, but he noted those aren’t frequently attended by the public.
He stressed that Roby is leaving the district on good terms.
“It was mutually agreed upon; it was amicable,” he said. “I think folks are maybe painting this as something different, but this was absolutely something that the board and the superintendent agreed upon.”
Roby was hired in 2020 to replace former superintendent Teresa Weatherall Neal. During her time with the district, she spearheaded the “Reimagine GRPS With Us!” facilities master plan and the associated $305 million bond, which voters approved in 2023. Under Roby’s leadership, the district’s graduation rates have climbed and vacant teaching positions have decreased.
“Our work together began in the midst of a pandemic,” Roby said in her February statement to the board. “Rather than standing still, we pushed forward by launching a new strategic plan and facilities master plan that set a bold course for the future.
“The results speak for themselves: higher test scores, record graduation rates, teacher vacancies cut in half, buses running on time, and a historic investment in our schools.”
‘I believe in our board and our ability to come through with some great applicants, but we want folks to be our eyes and ears.’
— GRPS Board President José Rodriguez
Next Steps
Rodriguez said the board is in the preliminary stages of finding a firm to help with the search for the next superintendent. They may turn to Ray & Associates, the firm that led the search that culminated in Roby’s employment, or may also opt to request proposals from prospective firms. Those discussions will continue to develop at the board level in the coming weeks, he said, and no firm decision has been made yet.
Rodriguez said the board welcomes community input on how to proceed.
“I’m a leader who wants to listen to the folks who are helping do the work,” he said. “We want to let the community know that we’re not just going with, for a lack of a better term, the same-old, same-old.
“I believe in our board and our ability to come through with some great applicants, but we want folks to be our eyes and ears.”
Rodriguez said the board has discussed the timeline and determined that they’d like to have a new superintendent picked out by the end of 2026.
He said he wants the GRPS community to know that finding a new superintendent is not a task the board takes lightly.
“We understand that we are at a crucial time for GRPS,” he said. “I really do believe that our next leader has to take the reins of leading GRPS into a more fruitful position — not only revitalizing GRPS as a district, but as one of the largest districts in the state, I think we have a huge role to play in advocating for better for public schools in Michigan. I’m really asking a lot from our next superintendent.”
Roby’s contract officially ends on June 30, 2027.
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