"It seems like the right time," she said.
Denlinger, who has been an educator for more than 40 years, spent nearly nine years leading the
Durham school system
.
The system is the seventh largest system in the state with 46 schools and more than 37,000 students.
The move comes at a time where student achievement in Durham is up. The average SAT score was at its highest ever last school year at 1005. More students took advanced placement tests last year, and 93 percent of Durham's third-graders passed reading tests.
School principals give Denlinger part of the credit for the rise saying in a signed letter, "We are so proud of where our schools are today and the direction they are taking compared to where they were when she arrived in Durham Public Schools."
Denlinger was named the North Carolina Superintendent of the Year five years ago. Her retirement is effective June 30, 2006.
On Thursday night, the school board named Deputy Superintendent Carl Harris as her successor.
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