Boston Deputy Superintendent Michael Goar resigns, will take job running Minnesota non-profit

By James Vaznis, Globe Staff

Boston Superintendent Carol R. Johnson is losing a key player on her team: Deputy Superintendent Michael Goar, who will be taking a job in Minnesota.

Goar, who is in second in command, is one of Johnson’s closest and most loyal advisors. He came to Boston just a few months after Johnson became superintendent in 2007, and he previously worked for her while she was superintendent in Memphis and in Minneapolis.

“Michael made this decision after a considerable amount of thought and reflection,” Johnson wrote in a letter to School Department staff Wednesday morning. “While we would have liked Michael to stay with us for many years to come, he has made this decision for a variety of reasons, and we wish him all the best in his new endeavor.”

His last day will be in early October. Goar will be starting a new job in the coming weeks as executive director of Twin Cities STRIVE, a nonprofit organization in Minnesota that advocates for high quality public education opportunities for urban youths, according to Johnson’s letter.

Goar is leaving as Johnson is in the midst of overhauling her executive team, but Matthew Wilder, a School Department spokesman said in an interview, that his departure was not related to the executive team restructuring.

“We are very sad to see him go,” Wilder said.

Goar has played an instrumental role in negotiating a new contract with the Boston Teachers Union, and on Monday night he presented the five proposals to revamp the way the School Department assigns students to schools.

He also oversaw the School Department’s transportation operation, food services, and another aspects of running the School Department.