The School Department will not renew the contract of Transportation Director Mary Jane Driscoll, Superintendent Barry Rabinovitch has confirmed.

Driscoll's three-year contract is up this year. Rabinovitch stressed that the decision had nothing to do with recent media reports regarding bus safety. He said he could not go into the specifics of the personnel matter, but he said that it was a mutual decision between Driscoll and management.

The decision not to renew a contract "comes after weighing people's strengths and weaknesses and whether or not they are bringing their department in the direction I feel that the school system needs to go," Rabinovitch said. "We have decided to look in a different direction."

Director of Operations and Finance Ana Miranda said due process was followed, and the decision came after a year-long process.

"Sometimes directions and visions are just not a good fit," Miranda said.

Rabinovitch said he hopes to have a transportation manager take over the department at the beginning of August. Because the district has a summer school program that utilizes transportation, Rabinovitch said he wants to make sure that the transition between Driscoll and the new manager is smooth.

Driscoll said she did not wish to comment at this time.