Long Beach schools chief David Weiss leaving for new post

Long Beach schools Superintendent David Weiss is stepping down after six years leading the district to take a position with the International Baccalaureate organization, he announced Saturday.

Weiss plans to officially submit his letter of resignation to the school board at a meeting Monday, according to a message he wrote to parents and community members that was posted on the district’s website.

He wrote that he will be head of U.S. Public Schools for International Baccalaureate, the Geneva-based educational foundation that offers rigorous academic programs to schools worldwide. The organization’s office in the United States is based in Bethesda, Maryland.

Weiss called serving as superintendent “an incredibly rewarding experience.”

“Reflecting back on my time within Long Beach, I am proud of how our schools have improved, thanks to the Board of Education, our dedicated staff and a community that has supported our schools,” Weiss wrote, citing achievement in academics, art, music and athletics. “ . . . I am confident that this progress will continue with the current administrative team in place.”

He said he is “committed to working with the school district through the start of the new academic year to ensure a smooth opening and transition.”

Weiss, reached by telephone Saturday, directed a reporter to his statement.

School board president Stewart Mininsky did not respond to a call for comment.

Weiss was named schools superintendent in 2011. He signed a three-year contract in July 2015 with a base salary of $222,218 that expires June 30, 2018, according to the nonprofit Empire Center’s website SeeThroughNY, which provides information on public employees’ compensation and pensions and other government spending.

The first day of school in the district is Sept. 6. The system’s projected 2017-18 enrollment is 3,673, according to information the district supplied to the state Education Department in the spring.

Weiss previously served as assistant superintendent for secondary education and district chief information officer for the Commack school district.

Long Beach High School has offered the IB program since 2010, while Long Beach Middle School received authorization in 2015 to offer IB’s “middle years programme.”