It was a somber moment when Rockwood School Board President Steve Smith handed over his gavel to Vice President Janet Strate on Dec. 15, only seconds after reading aloud his letter of resignation.

Though the meeting began like any other, with the Pledge of Allegiance and a few comments from Superintendent Bruce Borchers and some fellow board members on the District’s recent positive attributes, Smith immediately transitioned into his letter during the allocated commenting period.

He began, “Please accept this letter as my resignation from the presidency of the Rockwood School Board, effective immediately. I do intend to complete my term as an elected member of the board.”

Smith continued, “While I am honored and humbled to have been selected by my fellow board members as president, this position is not my priority. My priority is honoring the trust placed in me by our voters to serve our students, staff and community.”

Smith then cited an impending bond issue as a vital reason for his departure from the presidency, saying, “…the board appears to be reconsidering a decision on a potential 2012 bond issue. As you know, some people have expressed concerns about my being the board president while working for the company that has provided program management services for the district’s bond issue projects. Today, I remove that concern.”

“Our community has historically supported these bond issues,” Smith continued. ” It would be a disaster if some people’s opinions about my role as board president jeopardized this support.”

In the end, Smith explained in his letter that his “only motivation for serving on the board is to ensure the welfare of more than 22,000 students” and that it is for this reason that he is stepping down, seeing as the impending bond issue is in their best interests.

“This is a sad day for all of us on the board,” Strate said. “He [Smith] has been a very good president and we’re all very sad at his decision to step down.”

As for his rationale in the motion, Strate said, “It’s hard to really know if his presidency really would have affected voters [on the bond issue]. The Post-Dispatch just wrote so much about him. We [the board members] know it [Smith’s relationship with Glenn Construction] wasn’t an issue, but it was obviously bothersome to enough people.”

And as for the future of the board, Strate said she believes the members will continue to move forward.

“The key is that we are all equal on the board. It is just the job of the president to make sure that everyone’s voice is heard,” she said.

Smith also said he is looking forward to the future.

“I look forward to working with my fellow board members to effectively govern this wonderful school district and to working with our superintendent.”