Prince George's County interim school superintendent announces resignation The decision comes just weeks after a new state law was passed that allows County Executive Rushern L. Baker III (D) to select the new schools chief, and name the board chair and vice chair. "We are saddened by Dr. Crawley's decision to leave early," the Board of Education said in a joint statement released late Thursday night. However due to the passage of the recent legislation changing the governance structure of our school system, we fully understand. Crawley's decision could cause problems for Baker, who is searching for a new superintendent under unusual circumstances. He will select the superintendent but the person will report to the school board, not to him. Crawley will leave two days after the state law takes effect. His one-year, $215,000 contract was scheduled to end on June 30. Crawley, who was the district's seventh superintendent in 14 years, could not be reached for comment on Friday morning. "It is with mixed emotion that I submit my letter of resignation," he said in a statement. I have enjoyed my tenure as Interim Superintendent of schools and appreciate the support of our Board, staff, parents, students and members of the community. I am very proud of the accomplishments we have achieved during my tenure. Crawley was hired in August to replace former superintendent William R. Hite, who took the top job in Philadelphia. According to his contract, he was tasked with addressing the operations of the 123,000-student system, including human resources, supporting services, information systems and finance. Crawley, who had never served as a superintendent before taking the Prince George's position, came to the county after working as the deputy chief of programming in the office of special education of the D.C. public school system. He spent the majority of his 33-year career in Arlington County. He was one of three finalists to become the permanent school chief, but the search was derailed while state lawmakers considered Baker's proposal for a school takeover, making the superintendent a member of his cabinet and putting him in charge of the school system's $1.7 billion budget. The state instead approved a compromise bill that gives Baker limited authority. Crawley and the other two finalists withdrew their names from consideration during the legislative debate.