Amanda Purcell is reporting for Columbia-Greene Media John L. Edwards Primary School principal Steve Spicer has resigned. Spicer submitted his letter of resignation after learning his position would be cut when the district closes the JLE building and moves its students into the Montgomery C. Smith building in September. His resignation is effective August 31. Spicer, 56, was the Hudson City School District's only administrator of color. “My only regret in retirement is that the most diverse school district in Columbia County will no longer have any school administrators of color,” Spicer said. “And with Dr. [Maria L. ] Suttmeier and this school board having no specific plans or programs in place for future minority leadership recruitment, there won’t be any hope of another school principal of color in Hudson for many years to come.” Spicer submitted his resignation April 26, after Suttmeier and the Board of Education delivered an ultimatum to resign or be dismissed on June 30, which would have caused him to lose his health care coverage and summer salary, Spicer said. Suttmeier said it was widely known for some time that Spicer's position would be eliminated as a result of the building consolidation plan. “There is no dispute, and in fact, Mr. Spicer’s union representatives have agreed that he is the least senior elementary principal, and therefore, his position was to be abolished pursuant to New York Education Law 3013,” Suttmeier said. Beginning September 1, Spicer will serve as a consultant to school districts that want to improve the cultural diversity of their staffs, he said. Read the full story at HudsonValley360 [dot] com.