Two high-level Akron Public Schools administrators are preparing to leave the district ahead of the new school year.
Tamea Caver, the assistant superintendent and chief academic officer, and Steve Thompson, treasurer and chief financial officer, recently submitted their letters of resignation. The final day with Akron schools for both is July 31.
Thompson is heading to Riverside Local Schools in Lake County to serve as its chief financial officer and treasurer. He signed a three-year contract for the position.
“I am grateful for my time at Akron Public Schools and proud of the work we’ve accomplished,” Thompson told Signal Akron via text. “I look forward to this new opportunity to serve the Riverside Community.”
Caver is leaving to take the same position she held at Akron Public Schools — assistant superintendent — with the Warrensville Heights City Schools, according to a press release from APS.
“I leave knowing the district is in exceptionally good hands, with a dedicated and talented team and a clear vision for continued student success,” Caver said in the press release. “I am grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to serve the students, staff and families of Akron.”
The district said it will begin to search for Caver’s replacement immediately.
“Dr. Caver has been an invaluable member of our leadership team, and her contributions to our district have been many,” Superintendent Mary Outley said in the release. “Her dedication to educational excellence and her unwavering commitment to both our students and staff have left an indelible mark on APS.”
Thompson’s tenure marked by rocky relationship, large financial projects
Thompson’s tenure in Akron was marked by a tenuous relationship with former Superintendent Michael Robinson and several large-scale financial projects within the district.
Last year, in its annual evaluation of the superintendent and treasurer, the Akron Board of Education noted Thompson and Robinson needed to improve their working relationship. The two regularly traded sharp remarks in public meetings.
Thompson’s employment in Akron is managed directly by the Akron Board of Education, which will likely go through a search process before hiring its next treasurer.
Board President Carla Jackson did not reply to a request for comment.
Thompson also helped shepherd the school district through a dual construction bond and operating levy last November. The passage of that issue will fund the construction of a new North High School.
Shortly after the passage of the levy, the Akron Board of Education pushed for cuts across the system to help avoid deep spending of its cash reserves in coming years. Thompson was the point man to present the data and financial implications of the cuts to the board and public.
Recently, the second major construction project in the district, rebuilding Miller South School for the Visual and Performing Arts and Pfeiffer Elementary on the site of the old Kenmore High School, ran into major cost overruns.
The project was initially budgeted for $63 million, but delays and rising construction costs pushed the projection to over $76 million. Thompson presented three options to the board to address the budget shortfall, two of which would’ve redistricted Pfeiffer students to other schools in the district.
While no solution has been finalized, it appears that the construction project will go on as planned. The district expects to receive the majority of the $17 million in a joint fund shared by the city and the schools. The money was initially gathered to build the community learning centers under longtime Mayor Don Plusquellic.
The next Joint Board of Review meeting is scheduled for Friday, and a resolution could be finalized then.
Thompson was hired in 2022 after more than a decade as superintendent at Willoughby-Eastlake City Schools. He’s held other teaching and administrative positions across Ohio since the late 1990s. He also served three years in the U.S. Marine Corps and 17 years in the Ohio Army National Guard.
