Blue Valley superintendent Tonya Merrigan, whose career with the Johnson County district spans a quarter century, will retire at the end of the current school year.
The district made the announcement in a release Friday, a day after the school board held a special closed-door executive session meeting.
“Serving the Blue Valley community has been one of the greatest privileges of my career,” Merrigan is quoted in the district release.
Merrigan first joined Blue Valley schools as a high school counselor in 1999 and worked her way up the district ranks, serving at various points as an assistant principal, associate principal and in multiple district-level roles before being tapped for the district’s top job in 2019.
She is the eighth superintendent in Blue Valley schools history and the first woman to lead the district.
She worked alongside outgoing superintendent Todd White for more than a year and a half before formally taking over the role in summer 2020.
“I am incredibly proud of all we have accomplished together, from expanding student opportunities to focusing on health and well-being and ensuring every student’s success,” Merrigan said in her retirement announcement. “It has been a joy to work alongside such a talented and dedicated team of educators, staff and community members who are committed to making a difference in the lives of our students.”
She’ll officially step aside at the conclusion of the 2024-25 school year next summer.
She led the district at a tumultuous time, taking over the superintendent’s role as schools returned to in-person learning in the fall of 2020 during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Blue Valley, as well as other Johnson County school districts, dealt with declines in student achievement and “learning loss” exacerbated by the pandemic disruptions.
Politicized battles over schools’ pandemic response and curriculum related to diversity and inclusion also played out in local school board races — including in Blue Valley — during Merrigan’s tenure.
Still, during her time leading the district, Blue Valley continued to be regularly cited as the highest performing district in Kansas and one of the top rated public school districts in the country.
“Dr. Merrigan’s leadership and unwavering dedication to our students and staff have left a lasting impact on our district,” said school board president Gina Knapp. “Her focus on student success and support for educators has helped shape the future of Blue Valley. We are truly grateful for her years of service and the positive difference she has made. She will be missed, but her legacy will continue to guide us as we move forward.”
In its release, the district said it would soon begin the search for Merrigan’s successor, with the opportunity for community members and families to give feedback on what qualities they’d like to see in the next leader.
A more exact timeline and plan for searching for and hiring Blue Valley’s next superintendent will be released in the coming weeks, according to the release.
“We are committed to an inclusive and thoughtful process to select the next superintendent who will build on the strong foundation Dr. Merrigan has laid,” Knapp, the board president, said. “We value the input of our entire Blue Valley community in this important decision.”
Merrigan is the longest tenured superintendent of Johnson County’s six public school districts.
Both Shawnee Mission and USD 232 in De Soto have hired new district leaders in the past year and a half. Both Gardner-Edgerton and Spring Hill brought on new superintendents in 2022. Olathe’s Brent Yeager stepped into his role in 2021.
