North West Hendricks schools announces interim superintendent

LIZTON, Ind. (WISH) — North West Hendricks schools has named an interim superintendent, two weeks after the resignation of the previous superintendent, who disagreed with the school board about a teacher accused of an inappropriate relationship with a student.

Scott Syverson will serve as superintendent as the district looks for a permanent replacement to start in July 2020, the district said Tuesday.

Syverson previously served as chief talent officer for the Indiana Department of Education and as an administrator at both public and charter schools, the district said Monday.

Syverson replaces Mike Springer, who had been superintendent since 2017 and whose resignation was approved at an Oct. 8 school board meeting.

Board members at that meeting offered no explanation for Springer’s resignation, and Springer declined to comment. He had nearly a year left in his contract.

School parents and staff told News 8 they suspected Springer had been “pushed out” because he clashed with board members over the district’s handling of accusations against Tyler Bruce, a math teacher at Tri-West High School.

Bruce, who also serves as the school’s head football coach, was accused of inappropriate contact with an 11th-grade girl during the 2018-2019 academic year.

In July, Springer recommended terminating Bruce, but board members voted unanimously to keep Bruce on staff.

Bruce has been on paid administrative leave since June. The student’s parents filed a tort claim in August demanding the preservation of evidence. And in September, an Indiana Department of Education complaint was filed to revoke Bruce’s teaching license.