Middletown Board Ends Leave, Orders Superintendent Creeden Back After Report Clears Her

The Enlarged City School District of Middletown Board of Education voted March 5 to conclude Superintendent Amy Creeden’s administrative leave and directed her to resume her duties effective Tuesday, March 9, 2026. The board posted the action at its March 5 meeting and recorded the directive in its meeting materials.

Creeden has been away from the district since the start of the 2025–26 school year, with multiple sources placing the leave in September 2025. Camille Adoma was appointed acting superintendent on Sept. 4, 2025; Adoma had served as assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction since 2021 and was previously principal of Twin Towers Middle School. Creeden first served as interim superintendent from October 2021 to March 2022 and was named superintendent in March 2022.

The board commissioned a 19-page investigatory report from upstate law firm Ferrara Fiorenza PC after a district employee filed an Americans with Disabilities Act complaint against Creeden. The investigatory report found no wrongdoing by Creeden in that ADA matter, and Creeden’s attorney, Greg Berck, said the report vindicated her. “We are pleased to see this investigatory report finally become public,” Berck said, and added, “Creeden has not been provided access to this report despite numerous requests.” Berck also said Creeden prepared and submitted a reentry plan when requested and that the board failed to respond to that submission.

The board’s action on March 5 follows a contentious November meeting. On Nov. 20, 2025 the board rejected a motion to allow Creeden to return on Dec. 1 by a 5–4 vote. The five “no” votes were cast by Patricia DeJesus, Andrew Moore, Curtis Rhett, Denise Romero and Freddie Williams. The four “yes” votes were cast by Edwin Estrada, John Perrino, Rose Tobiassen and John Williams. In a Nov. 26 email, district spokesperson Kevin Witt said the district “does not comment on personnel matters,” and that “Board of Education President Denise Romero is declining further comment.”

Parents and staff have pressed for details about the leave and the ADA complaint, and social media posts circulated rumors of a suspension while the matter remained undisclosed. The district initially told families the leave would last “for several weeks,” and the gap between that statement and the board’s November vote amplified community frustration.

Key questions remain: whether the full Ferrara Fiorenza report will be made available to Creeden and the public, the exact contents and filing date of the ADA complaint, and the board’s rationale for rejecting a December return but ordering reinstatement March 9. Creeden is scheduled to resume duties March 9, 2026, and the board’s March 5 minutes and the 19-page report will be central to understanding how the district resolved the dispute.