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Rose Tree-Media superintendent says he will resign in 2017

The Rose Tree-Media School District's embattled superintendent told the school board that he will step down in June 2017, three years before his contract ends, but parents say that's not soon enough.

The Rose Tree-Media School District's embattled superintendent told the school board that he will step down in June 2017, three years before his contract ends, but parents say that's not soon enough.

"Two years is two years too long," said Jim Coyne, a member of RTM Strong, a parent group that has petitioned the school board to fire Jim Wigo, who has led the district since 2011.

Parents in the affluent Delaware County district have a litany of complaints against the schools chief, including what they say are an explosive temper and his hiring of a principal who was subsequently charged with child pornography.

The most recent problem occurred at the start of the school year, they said, when Wigo allegedly yelled at a first grader. The school board has said it is investigating that incident and others.

Parents started calling for Wigo's dismissal after he attempted to fire a well-liked elementary school principal last year. They collected hundreds of signatures on a petition seeking Wigo's firing.

William O'Donnell, acting school board president, announced the proposal at a meeting Thursday, saying Wigo had approached the board with the offer to leave at an executive session earlier in the night.

O'Donnell noted that during Wigo's term, Rose Tree Media "has been recognized on a national scale."

Later, he said he thought the board would accept the deal. "I know it won't make everyone happy," he said.

The school board already has several key vacancies to fill, including an elementary principal, human resources director, and assistant superintendent.

While the proposal is not a done deal, it may be the only recourse for a community that would have to pay more than a million dollars to buy out Wigo's five-year contract if there was no cause for dismissal.

The 64-year-old superintendent is paid $205,000 per year in addition to benefits and other perks.

"No one likes to see someone getting paid not to work," O'Donnell said.

kboccella@phillynews.com

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@Kathy_Boccella