The Baltimore City school board’s chair and vice-chair have resigned after a power struggle over how the board operates and its selection of CEO Sonja Santelises to lead the system for two more years, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak about the issue.

The chair of the board, Ronald McFadden, and the vice-chair, Shantell Roberts, sent letters of resignation Tuesday morning and late Monday night to Mayor Brandon Scott, sources said. Nine of the board’s 12 members are appointed by the mayor, including McFadden and Roberts, so the mayor will appoint replacements.

The resignations were a surprise to other members of the board, a source said.

McFadden’s resignation comes on the day the board was expected to meet in private session to discuss how it would operate in the future.

“Conversations were intensifying in the past week around how the board operates,” one source said. Previously, some board members had expressed concerns privately that McFadden wielded too much control over the board and centered decision making in the leadership.

The school system announced the resignations, effective immediately, in a press release around noon and later said the board would meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday to discuss ”further guidance regarding this organizational update.” The statement said the board was committed to “maintaining a strong and stable school governance structure as we continue serving our students, families, staff, and stakeholders.”

The resignations follow Scott’s appointment of three new board members in July, apparently swinging the board to support Santelises. Earlier this month, the board voted in an open meeting to give Santelises an additional year, extending her contract to June 30, 2026. McFadden and Roberts did not vote on the action.

The two leaders didn’t stand when the rest of the room jumped to its feet and cheered the decision. Santelises has led the system for eight years and her achievements include a steady increase in test scores and stable leadership in the highest ranks of the school system. The mayor has generally supported Santelises.

McFadden and Roberts could not immediately be reached for comment.

Before Scott appointed the new board members in July, negotiations between the board and Santelises had dragged on far past what is considered normal for superintendents in Maryland. McFadden had led those negotiations with Santelises, keeping other school members in the dark, sources close to the board said at the time. They were not told that Santelises wanted a two-and-a-half year extension to her contract.

McFadden denied he had kept information from other board members.

In June, the board gave her a one-year extension, an action that some in the school system considered embarrassing for Santelises. Santelises had said afterwards she had wanted a longer contract but she was glad to have the time to continue her work.

Roberts was first appointed to the school board in 2019 by Mayor Bernard “Jack” Young. She founded Touching Young Lives, a nonprofit that focuses on health and well-being of infants and children, according to the school system’s website. She is a graduate of Western High School and is a parent of a city school student.

McFadden is currently a middle school assistant principal in Baltimore County. A professionally trained musician, he taught music at Booker T. Washington Middle School. He was appointed to the board in 2018, and he and Roberts were given leadership roles on the board in June 2023.

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