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Mercedes ISD Superintendent Carolyn Mendiola announced Wednesday her intention to retire early in the 2022-2023 school year.
Rumors began swirling about a possible superintendent shakeup after a contentious board meeting Tuesday evening.
A majority on the board outvoted Mendiola’s request to delay a campus move for Mercedes Early College Academy, the location of which has been a sore spot at the district for months.
Mendiola said that decision and board politics played no role in her decision to call it quits.
“I’ve been through the wringer and I’m a survivor,” she said. “I had already been contemplating it, discussing it with family.”
Instead, Mendiola said it was simply the right time to slow down. She intends to spend more time seaside.
“I’ve put in 27 years in education. Hitting 53, and life on the beach looks good,” she said.
Mendiola is in her third year at the district. She previously worked in Sharyland and La Joya ISD.
Although the effective date of Mendiola’s retirement is not finalized, she says she hopes to continue serving through September.
“I’m hoping to get the school year started, everyone off to a good start,” she said. “A lot of things happen in the summer as far as planning for budget, employee raises, compensations. So I definitely want to see all of that through.”
Mendiola wished the Mercedes community well.
“I have had a wonderful 27-year career in education,” she said. “No regrets, no looking back. I’m gonna miss the kids. I will sorely miss the students, and just the climate of surrounding myself with educators. It’s one of the best professions that anybody can go into.”
