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Palo Alto Unified Superintendent Don Austin, board agree to part ways

EdSource

Published:
2026-02-20
Retrieved:
2026-05-14
URL:
https://edsource.org/updates/palo-alto-unified-superintendent-don-austin-board-agree-to-part-ways

Key points

  • EdSource coverage by veteran California education reporter John Fensterwald, published February 23, 2026.
  • Reports Don Austin and the PAUSD board agreed to 'part ways' — characterized as a mutual agreement after documented tensions.
  • Frames the departure as board-pressured rather than a courted-away move.
  • No mention of Laguna Beach or Austin's next role; published roughly three months before the LBUSD appointment.
  • Independent corroboration of the PAUSD departure framing that the May 14, 2026 LBUSD press release softened.

Cited by 1 event

  1. Board appoints Dr. Don Austin as next superintendent

    EdSource coverage of the February 2026 mutual separation agreement that ended Don Austin's tenure as Palo Alto Unified superintendent, several months before his Laguna Beach appointment.