Two La Joya ISD cabinet members resign
Two of La Joya ISD’s cabinet members resigned this semester, saying family matters prompted them to leave the school district.
Joseph Niedziela, chief of staff, submitted his resignation letter on March 5, while Jaime Miller, the district’s chief of human capital and talent development, submitted her resignation letter on April 16.
According to separation agreements the district signed with both administrators, La Joya ISD placed both on administrative leave shortly after they submitted their resignation letters and will continue paying them salary and benefits through the end of June, along with any unused leave days.
Superintendent Marcey Sorensen said Niedziela and Miller have done valuable work for the district.
Joseph Niedziela
“Both played an important role in the district’s efforts to make significant structural changes to improve the quality of education provided to La Joya ISD students and create strong systems from which the central office team can build upon looking ahead,” she said.
Niedziela and Miller represent a third of Sorensen’s cabinet and are two of the four top-level out-of-town administrators Sorensen brought in after the Texas Education Agency took over La Joya ISD in 2024.
Jaime Miller
They were, in short, some of the highest-profile faces in the new regime at La Joya ISD.
Nevertheless, Sorensen says she doesn’t think their departure will cause any disruption.
“Services to our stakeholders and the community will not be disrupted due to their departure as customer service is a foundational element of our leadership team,” she said. “Excellence in leadership is one of the five priorities of the district’s strategic plan. We will continue to serve with these as our core values. The team will assess the future needs of our cabinet and make decisions in accordance with those needs as we seek to either replace or redesign in the best interest of our district, not just for now but looking ahead.”
Both Niedziela and Miller said in their resignation letters that they were resigning due to family matters.
Snyder ISD, in North Texas, announced just days after Miller’s resignation that it had hired her as an assistant superintendent.
Niedziela offered to continue working at La Joya ISD through the end of his contract this summer.
“Serving this community under your leadership has been the greatest privilege of my professional career,” he wrote in an email to Sorensen. “I am profoundly grateful for the opportunity to serve with you in advancing the important work of our schools and delivering on the promise of excellence for every student in La Joya ISD.”
The district didn’t take Niedziela up on his offer, placing him on administrative leave about a week after he submitted his resignation letter.
It placed Miller on administrative leave the day after she submitted her resignation.
In separation agreements, the district agreed to continue paying Niedziela and Miller through the end of June.
“In order to continue the continuous improvement and implementation of critical changes without delay or disruption, Mr. Niedziela and Ms. Miller are on administrative leave until their employment contracts expire,” Sorensen said. “This allows the district to begin the process to find the most highly qualified people to fill all mission-critical positions well in advance of the next school year. The district is committed to finding individuals for all positions who are dedicated to the district’s vision to provide educational excellence for every district student, on every campus, in every classroom, every day.”
In those separation agreements Niedziela and Miller agreed to not sue the district or to speak badly about it.
The district agreed to provide general information to prospective employers about Niedziela and Miller.
The district also agreed to remove negative documentation from Miller’s personnel file and to maintain it in a separate location accessible by the superintendent and the district’s human capital staff on a need-to-know basis.
