Ada resigns from PSS

Education Commissioner Dr. Alfred B. Ada has submitted his resignation to the Board of Education, citing health reasons for stepping down effective Sept. 1.

The BOE has yet to accept the education chief’s letter of intent to resign.

“I am hopeful that I will get better, that my health will improve and that it will not get the best of my desire to continue serving our Public School System. But as of lately, my failing health has affected my ability to take on greater responsibilities. With the support of my wife and children and loved ones, and those who continue to believe in my desire to serve, please support my decision to prioritize my health,” Ada said in a statement yesterday.

Right now, he said, it is the recommendation of his primary care physician that he step away from work and submit to complete rest to be able to fully recover.

“Once I fully recover, I will return to serve this community in whatever capacity I am asked of,” he added.

Ada was appointed in December 2019 after a rigorous hiring process to fill the vacancy left by Glenn Muña, who resigned after barely two years as education commissioner. Muña left “for personal reasons.”

For the first time, Ada publicly disclosed that he underwent a quadruple heart bypass in September 2021, just over a year after his hiring.

Lately, he has been vocal about his deteriorating health. He has been working against the advice of his physician to take a needed rest to fully recover from his surgery. He was advised to take a leave of absence for one year following his surgery. But two months after his open-heart surgery, Ada returned to work.

Ada has spent over 30 years within the Public School System as a classroom teacher at San Vicente Elementary School, vice principal at William S. Reyes Elementary School, principal of Kagman High School, literacy coach, and eventually Public School System education commissioner.

Ada is credited for providing stability within PSS: Dr. Rita A. Sablan’s retirement in 2016, Cynthia Deleon Guerrero’s firing in 2017, and Muña’s retirement in 2019.

He took over when PSS was still reeling from the challenges brought by supertyphoons Yutu and Soudelor, and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ada paid tribute to his team and the community for their continued support in the success of the school district. (PR)