By Teresa Rochester

The day after he announced his retirement the e-mails began to roll in -- the ones that wished School Superintendent Neil Schmidt good luck and the ones that said it's been a pleasure working with him.

The questions are rolling in too -- the ones surrounding the 59-year-old district head's reasons for stepping down from the $138,000-a-year post (including stipends) that he's held for eight years.

In his letter -- released Wednesday -- announcing his retirement in June 2001, Schmidt offered no impetus for his decision to leave his position, which has served as a lightening rod for controversy over the district's recent financial crisis and state issued special education non-compliance findings. Schmidt's letter only stated that he will miss his position and that he will teach at UCLA and run an avocado orchard after his retirement.

In two exclusive interviews with The Lookout on Wednesday and Thursday, Schmidt said his retirement -- which coincides with the expiration of his contract that would have to be renewed by a board with three newly elected members -- was a long-time in coming.

"It's something I had told the board three years ago, I would work until I'm 60," said Schmidt. "I've been a superintendent for over 20 years. I've passed up many opportunities. I want to do other things in my life while I can. Working 80 to 90 hours a week takes a lot out of your life. I still love what I do. That's the problem. I don't know how to slow it down."

In the last two weeks word had spread through the community that Schmidt had been discussing his retirement with the board in closed session, reports Schmidt would not confirm or deny earlier this week. However, retiring had been on his mind.

In his letter, Schmidt wrote that that possibility of his retirement being the subject of a newspaper article had pushed him to make his announcement sooner than he had expected.

"I was planning on announcing my retirement publicly, effective June 2001, at the board meeting of June 1 or 14," wrote Schmidt. "Unfortunately, I am not afforded that opportunity."

Instead word went out via fax and a posting on the district's Web site, a move that caught at least one board member off guard.

"I wish Neil had a chance to discuss this publicly because that would be the proper forum," said the board's vice chair, Tom Pratt. "I wish him well. I just wish he had had the opportunity to do this in an open forum to discuss this in public. He's a good man and he was very helpful to me in my learning."

Schmidt, who served as superintendent for the Lodi, Calif. School District before coming to Santa Monica, also said he wished his announcement had been made at a board meeting, but that the local media had forced his hand.

"That's the way it's supposed to have been done," said Schmidt about making his announcement before the board. "That's the respectful way. When you have media that don't respect that that's a problem."

Schmidt and board members balked at allegations that the Superintendent may have violated the Brown Act, the state's open meeting law. Schmidt said that personnel issues are consistently on the board's closed session agenda and that the board is not required to give detailed comment on the agenda about those discussions unless a decision has been made.

"You agendize personnel items or issues which allow you to discuss personnel issues," said Schmidt, who added that he has brought up his retirement periodically with the board and district staff. "As part of the process you begin to talk to staff on a daily basis, so that it doesn't come out of the blue. Yes. I shared that [my retirement] with them but obviously they had a sense of it."

Board President Todd Hess said the negative comments surrounding Schmidt's announcement were uncalled for.

"It's unfortunate that the negative political environment in our city, particularly Santa Monica, has put a negative tinge on Neil's superintendency," said Hess. "My opinion is that he has done a superb job and we will have a very difficult job replacing him."

Board member and former board president Margaret Quinones agreed.

"I think it's a sad tragic day for the kids," Quinones said. "He's a great educator, but he's entitled to rest. He was the biggest advocate of kids of color, kids who come from poverty."

Schmidt, whose first job as a superintendent was in a district in Santa Cruz, Calif with 1,000 students, said the next step will begin on the summer with the board interviewing several search firms to find a new superintendent. Education activist Patricia Hoffman, said she hoped the search will be a public process.

"I think Neil's been a real good superintendent," said Hoffman. "I'm pleased with his time here. I've probably met 100 superintendents and the pool out there is not great. I hope it is a community process. We require that kind of attention. We are intense. We are demanding."