Edgewood Independent School District trustees voted 6-1 on Wednesday to approve Superintendent Eduardo Hernández's voluntary early retirement agreement, pushing the decision through just days before newly elected board members are set to take their seats. Hernández's last day will be Feb. 1, and he will serve as superintendent emeritus until then.
Community members and parents had asked the board to delay any agreement until the incoming trustees are sworn in at a Nov. 17 meeting, according to Texas Public Radio. The current board approved the retirement agreement anyway, with six trustees in favor and just one opposed.
Hernández's annual salary stood at $335,193, and he was also receiving an additional retirement supplement of $26,815, the station reported. The district's board president said the amount the board agreed to pay Hernández as part of the retirement deal would not be made public until the end of the week, leaving the financial terms of his exit unknown for now.
A Superintendent's Tenure Cut Short
Hernández joined Edgewood ISD in 2018, according to the San Antonio Express-News. He was initially hired that year for a three-year term with an annual salary of $205,000 and a $1,000 monthly allowance, per the same outlet's earlier reporting on his contract history. The board extended his contract to June 2030 last year and extended it again in September to June 2031, raising his salary to $291,923, with trustee Michael Valdez casting the lone dissenting vote at the time over budget constraints and added insurance costs.
KABB / Fox San Antonio reported that the district said more information about its leadership transition would be announced, though no further details were included in that statement.
Election Upheaval Set the Stage
The timing of Wednesday's vote follows a dramatic shake-up at the ballot box. Three incumbent Edgewood ISD trustees were defeated by challengers during the Nov. 3 midterm election, a result that reshaped the board just as Hernández's exit was being finalized.
That turnover, along with the board's decision to act before the new trustees are seated, is part of why community members pushed for a delay in the first place. The district is also contending with a $3.7 million budget deficit adopted for the current school year, adding financial pressure to a leadership transition already drawing scrutiny.
Part of a Regional Pattern
Hernández's departure is not an isolated event in the San Antonio education landscape. He is the sixth San Antonio-area superintendent to exit the role in the past year, Texas Public Radio reported, a pace of turnover that has rattled several of the region's largest districts.
Over an eight-month span, five of San Antonio's largest school districts experienced superintendent turnover, with one superintendent fired, two retiring and two resigning, according to the Express-News. Edgewood's own leadership change now adds another chapter to that broader pattern as the district awaits its incoming board and further word on what comes next.
