Royal Oak Superintendent Mary Beth Fitzpatrick announces retirement; board accepts and outlines search timeline

Superintendent Mary Beth Fitzpatrick announced at the March 13, 2025 Royal Oak Schools Board of Education meeting that she will retire effective July 31, 2025, and the board voted to accept her resignation.

Fitzpatrick told the board she has served the community since 2017 and has worked 39 years in public education. "After four decades in public education...it is time to enjoy more quality time with my family," she said during her announcement.

The board moved to amend the agenda to add the superintendent retirement as new business and then voted to accept the retirement. Trustee Van Heitzman moved the retirement acceptance; Trustee Anderson seconded. The motion carried by voice vote; the transcript records one opposition during the final vote.

Board members used the public discussion to thank Fitzpatrick and discuss next steps for an open and transparent search. Trustee Van Heitzman proposed interviewing two search firms'the Michigan Leadership Institute and the Michigan Association of School Boards'and asked staff to arrange firm presentations in public sessions. Board members discussed scheduling short (about 30-minute) presentations during the week of March 18 or the following week, with alternative dates proposed to accommodate members'and acknowledged that not all board members might be available to attend every meeting.

No salary, severance or transition details were presented at the meeting. The board said it would conduct the search and related meetings in public sessions and post required public notices.

Fitzpatrick, the district's first female superintendent, said she looks forward to time with family while continuing to serve through the end of the school year and into the summer transition period. The board will post details of the search process and subsequent meetings when dates and vendors are finalized.