Yellowknife (Dec 17/04) - A tearful Judith Knapp says she feels "betrayed" by the public school board after it voted Tuesday to begin the search for a new superintendent to take over when her contract expires next June.

Superintendent Judith Knapp says she feels "devastated and betrayed" by the public school board, which voted not to renew her contract when it ends next June.

At its regular meeting Dec. 14, trustees for Yellowknife Education District No. 1 rejected a motion to extend Knapp's contract until June 2007, then voted to begin the search for a new superintendent.

Only trustee Dave Lovell voted in favour of Terry Brookes' motion to extend Knapp's contract, both offering statements of support for the work she has done.

Trustee Lavona Clarke brought forward the motion to find a new superintendent effective July 1, 2005. It passed unanimously.

Knapp has been superintendent since October 1999, when the board fired then-superintendent Ken Woodley.

On Wednesday, Knapp said she was shocked at the turn of events, coming a little more than a month after going through a performance review she believed was positive.

"If there is some reason they don't want me, they haven't communicated it," she said, crying.

Knapp said she had asked the board to let her know about her future with Yk No. 1 by the end of November, but didn't expect it to come during a public meeting.

"I felt devastated and a bit betrayed. Since they've come on board I've done a lot of work to get them up to speed," she said.

That work included weekend meetings, lunch meetings every Tuesday and other special gatherings to brief the rookie board on district programs and administration, she said.

"We're at a point where we finally have a board that's positive, then this happens. I just don't understand why they want to change leadership now because it's going to set them back."

This isn't the first time Knapp found herself on the firing line. Before the October 2003 election, the school board appeared ready to dismiss Knapp. They backed down after a public outcry and a warning from the minister of education.

Board chairperson Reanna Erasmus was quiet about what prompted the board's decision, saying Knapp knew her contract was coming to an end. "It's a personnel matter and it's confidential," said Erasmus after the meeting.

When asked if the decision came as a result of the CEO Evaluation Review completed by Dr. Leroy Sloan on Nov. 8 and passed by the board Nov. 9, she said "no."

Board wouldn't comment

The board wouldn't comment on the review when it was released, but according to Knapp, her performance was fine. Only trustee Keith Scott would comment on his decision to support the search for a new superintendent.

"I'm not as happy as I would have liked to have been (with the superintendent's performance)," he said Wednesday.

Clarke and Duff Spence declined comment, while Dale Thomson was not available.

Knapp said she hasn't made any decisions about what she will do once her contract with the public district ends next summer.