Lolli agreed to stay on as superintendent after her previous contract expired in summer 2021, to guide the district through the pandemic. Her contract expires July 31 and she said she has fulfilled her part of the agreement.
In a letter to the community posted last week on the district’s website, Lolli said, “As I finish the final year of my contract....I want to thank the board, staff, students, families, and community for helping DPS to finally raise its state rating above an F before the COVID-19 disruptions and again, after the pandemic in 2021-22. We have made key steps for systematic change and lasting progress. As I have said before, the Ohio Superintendent of the Year honor, just bestowed on me, recognizes not only my previous administrative work but also the road DPS is taking to quality. It’s a team award.”
“Together, with the support of the board and community, we have done important things for our DPS children, all of which help lead to better performance. It begins with teachers. Recent years have been hard, yet DPS teachers have stepped up. As a former professor, I’m proud we developed strong professional development that our educators embrace and use to improve student achievement daily,” she said the letter.
Her base salary was $205,000 in the 2021-2022 school year, according to her contract. The Dayton school board voted at its Jan. 10 meeting five to one in favor of granting Lolli a retroactive 5% increase to Aug. 1, 2022. Board member Joe Lacey was the sole no vote and Gabriella Pickett was not present.
Lollis was first hired as the assistant superintendent for teaching and learning in 2016 for the district. She was promoted to interim superintendent after former superintendent Rhonda Corr was ousted in fall 2017, following a teachers’ union meeting where Corr was described as “unkempt” and after she allegedly broke other rules for the district, including receiving death benefits for a domestic partner while legally married to another person, according to a pre-disciplinary hearing notice.
Lolli was named superintendent in March 2018 and was named 2023 Ohio superintendent of the year. Lolli has been in education for 45 years, with 15 years as a superintendent in various districts.
On Tuesday night, the school board had a discussion about requests for proposals for a new superintendent on its agenda.
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