Comal ISD Supt. Andrew Kim resigned today just four months after receiving a $48,000 pay increase and a contract extension until 2027.
The 51-year-old cited personal reasons for stepping down following a budget workshop Tuesday. Although his resignation won’t be effective until Sept. 30, Kim will take personal leave effective immediately.
No further information about Kim’s resignation is available. Sources with immediate knowledge of the situation say Comal ISD’s board of trustees met until 2:30 a.m.
Trustees appointed Mandy Epley, assistant superintendent of Strategic Initiatives and Programs, to serve as interim superintendent for the district.
In an email to parents today, Board of Trustees President Jason York described Kim as “instrumental” to the school district’s success over the last 10 years.
“I was on the board in 2012 when we hired Mr. Kim, and at that time we knew that for the district to achieve all that was possible, we needed the leadership and direction he could provide,” he said. “In Texas, the average tenure of a superintendent is three years. Mr. Kim has been with us for 10, giving us unprecedented consistency and steadiness through some challenging times.”
Over the past 10 years, York said the district’s academic performance rose from “barely being acceptable” to becoming one of the state’s top performing districts.
Under Kim’s watch the district grew by 9,000 students and in response the community supported three consecutive bond elections to build eight new schools.
“From a fiscal standpoint, we have continued to adhere to conservative management principals with our budget, with our overall tax rate lower than where it was 10 years ago,” York said.
He also credited Kim’s leadership with seeing the district through the COVID-19 pandemic.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott in March appointed Kim to serve on a Texas Education Agency (TEA) task force on educator staffing. In June 2021, the governor also asked Kim to serve on Texas’ State Board of Educator Certification. In 2017, 2019 and 2021 Abbott apointed Kim to the Texas School Safety Center’s board of directors.
In 2018 Kim was named superintendent of the year by the Texas PTA.
He served as Manor ISD superintendent from 2008 to 2012.
