WOBURN - Schools' Supt. Dr. Carl Batchelder formally announced earlier this week that he will step down from the district's top post next June.

Following Tuesday night's School Committee meeting, the lifelong educator revealed that he will not attempt to renew his contract with the education board when the six-year pact expires this summer.

The supt. had already shared his retirement decision with other administrators, teachers, and staff members during their first days of the 2008-2009 school year.

"As I announce my upcoming retirement effective with the close of my contract in June of 2009, I will leave with a sense of honor, achievement, and gratitude for having served as Superintendent of Schools in Woburn for over 15 years," said Batchelder in a prepared statement released to The Daily Times on Tuesday night.

"It has been my distinct honor to have been a participant and contributor to the proud history of the City of Woburn; and I offer my continued best wishes for the future success of the Woburn Public Schools," the supt. concluded.

Hired to lead Woburn's school system in 1994, Batchelder started his career in education nearly 35 years ago, when he was hired to serve as music director in Franklin, N.H.

The Keene, N.H. native, who also earned money on the side at the time as a bus driver, then jumped to the administrative world six years later, accepting a principal's job in Nottingham, N.H.

Batchelder also served as an asst. supt. in Hookset and Farmington, N.H. between 1983 and 1987, before heading up his first school district in Hanson, Mass. for five years.

The supt., slated to earn $148,670 this year, cited the building of four new school facilities, the integration of technology into the classroom, and the creation of a full-day kindergarten program as some of his proudest accomplishments during his 15-year tenure.

The city's top school administrator also steered Woburn through several difficult tragedies in recent years, including the April of 2005 murder of Joyce Middle School teacher Sylvie DeSilets and the grisly double murder the year prior of 12-year-old middle school student Alyssa Presti and her mother Joanne.