The superintendent of the Williamsville Central School District has been put on administrative leave following an emergency Board of Education meeting Monday.

The board says they felt blindsided by the actions of Superintendent Dr. Scott Martzloff. Assistant Superintendent Dr. John McKenna is stepping in as interim superintendent and says he wants to earn back the community's trust.

"There is a collaborative process to make sure this gets solved," McKenna said.

"We as a board were led to believe that we were ready to reopen school," said Teresa Leatherbarrow, the president of the Williamsville school board.

The board says it was unaware of the superintendent’s decision to delay the start of school for remote middle school and high school students. Martzloff made that announcement Friday, just days before the September 8 start date.

McKenna says school will begin Tuesday only for hybrid students while Remote learners are on pause for now.

"The reason that we had to put the pause on is because remote 5 to 12 didn't have enough teachers to open," McKenna added.

McKenna says that gap they need to fill is 15 teachers for the middle school and about nine for the high school. He says his district lost 74 substitute teachers during the pandemic. He added that while he navigates this new role he will keep the community informed every step of the way.

"I'll be communicating with everyone on a regular basis every time we have new information, and I'll transparent throughout this process,' McKenna said.

School officials say there is a full inquiry pending into Martzloff's conduct in office and his conduct in reopening schools.