Bensalem’s superintendent is resigning as the district faces a $12 million budget deficit
Superintendent Samuel Lee resigned after more than a decade leading Bensalem Township School District. Victoria Velasquez will serve as interim superintendent.
Bensalem Township Superintendent Samuel Lee has resigned from the Bucks County school district amid what officials have described as severe budget challenges.
At a March 11 meeting, the school board unanimously approved Lee’s resignation, which takes effect April 1.
The board also approved a separation agreement with Lee, who has been superintendent since 2015 and last March was appointed to another four-year contract.
Reading a statement at the board meeting last week, board president Deborah King didn’t comment on the reason for Lee’s departure.
“After discussion with the board, the superintendent has decided to resign,” King said. “We thank him for his service to the district and wish him well in his future endeavors.”
Lee did not immediately return a request for comment Wednesday.
King noted that the leadership change comes as the district is “also facing significant financial challenges, including a $12 million budget deficit.” Bensalem officials have cited rising special education and charter school tuition payments as major cost pressures.
If the district raises taxes by 4.2% next year, it will still be more than $7 million short, John Steffy, the district’s director of business operations, said at last week’s meeting.
The district could cover that gap by restructuring debt, he said, though doing so will prolong the number of years the district pays it off.
In a March 11 letter to the community, Lee said that “serving as superintendent of Bensalem Township School District has been one of the greatest honors of my professional life.”
“As I prepare to step away from this role, I want to express my deep gratitude to our students, families, staff, and community members who make this district such a special place,” Lee said in the letter.
The board last week appointed Victoria Velasquez, currently assistant to the superintendent for K-12 administration, as interim superintendent while it searches for Lee’s successor.
The board also last week accepted the resignation of financial manager Brett Haskin. King said that the departure of Haskin — who is taking a job with the Pennsbury School District — was not connected to Lee’s resignation.