LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — In the wake of Little Rock School District Superintendent Dr. Jermall Wright’s surprise decision to resign Thursday, people in and out of the district are lamenting the move and trying to get him to reconsider his resignation.
Greg Adams, who is on the LRSD school board representing Zone 8, was sad to hear the news.
"I really liked Dr. Wright and supported him,” Adams said, “And I think that he had the board support, and so, I’m just so disappointed that that he decided that it was not best for him to stay."
Adams isn’t alone. Following Wright's announcement, a Facebook group was formed with the intention to keep him as superintendent.
Chad Henson is someone who joined that group, saying he worked as a Pre-K paraprofessional at the district’s Rockefeller Early Childhood Center as recently as this year.
"There's been several superintendents before him,” Henson said, “and out of all of them, he's legitimately made the most progress."
Henson no longer lives in Little Rock, but he said he’s still passionate about the fact that Wright was the right man for the job and he wishes he could reconsider.
"I'd like him to come back and continue the work he was doing against all odds,” Henson said, “Which I know is not the easiest thing to do in the Little Rock School District."
Dr. Wright did release a statement Friday morning, following his initial resignation letter on Thursday.
This letter was shorter than his resignation letter, which listed many of his accomplishments and things he was proud of.
Friday’s statement said in part: "I understand this news may come as a surprise, and I want to assure you that this decision was made with careful thought and reflection. I will continue to serve diligently during the transition to new leadership."
Adams said he didn’t know exactly why Wright stepped down, but based on his initial resignation letter, he had a guess.
"He talked about the board,” Adams said, “And, you know, needing to be really aligned with the superintendent. And so, my guess would be that that he felt that needed to be better."
Adams said that the next step will be a meeting with the board and Dr. Wright on Monday.
He said as far as he knows, the opening and closing of the meeting will be open to the public, but the majority of the session will be private.
He also stressed that even with Dr. Wright gone, the board wants to continue to make progress, and they welcome public feedback as they do so.