Sylvester Small — who started in the Akron Public Schools as substitute teacher in 1970 and became superintendent in 2001 — announced his retirement Monday, effective July 31.

''This will conclude a very long and rewarding career of 38 years, all within the Akron Public Schools,'' Small said at a morning news conference.

School board members Linda Omobien and the Rev. Curtis Walker will co-chair the committee to find Small's successor, who would begin Aug. 1, according to the district's search timeline.

The board intends to contract with the Ohio School Boards Association to conduct a candidate search.

Applications will be due by Jan. 25. The board will meet with OSBA late this month to develop a brochure outlining what the district is looking for to fill the job.

On Jan. 8, the OSBA will interview staff and community groups.

''We want the community to be involved in the process. We want to hear from our staff and we want everybody to have an opportunity to talk about the kind of person you would like to see,'' said Omobien, the board's vice president.

Longtime board member Sam Salem said that of the six superintendents with whom he has served — all made significant contributions to the district — Small was the best.

''In my opinion, this man here stands at the top,'' Salem said.

Small, 60, said he is retiring next year before he is unable to keep putting in the long days. He said he also needs more flexibility to care for his 83-year-old mother and have more time for his wife, who is living in Florida, and grandchildren.

He said he intends to keep his home in Akron.

''I know that I will be working with children,'' he said.

''My goal has always been that once I retire, I would volunteer in some school.''

Board members praised Small for his work in improving the district's performance on standardized tests during his tenure and his collaboration with the business community, churches, the University of Akron and Akron city government.

They agreed that Small has set a high bar for his replacement.

''He has been a superb leader in the truest sense of the word since he took the reins in 2001,'' said school board President Linda Kersker, who also is retiring this year after 16 years on the board.

The board recently increased Small's salary from $167,000 a year to $172,010, retroactive to Aug. 1. His two-year contract is up next year.

The boost should help his pension, which will be based on the average of his three highest years of pay, his age at retirement and years of service, according to the State Teachers Retirement System.

He also will be eligible for all or a portion of unused vacation and sick days, based on a formula that sets a maximum amount he can receive.

After several years as a teacher and principal, Small became assistant superintendent in June 1995. He was named to the top job in May 2001 after edging finalist Donna Loomis, who was named deputy superintendent.

In January of that year, Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic used his annual State of the City address to threaten a Cleveland-style mayoral takeover of school operations if the schools didn't improve.

But over the years of Small's tenure, the city and the district worked closely together on a plan to rebuild the city's schools that would also be open after hours to the public as community centers.

In 2003, the city-schools relationship culminated with the passage of Issue 10 — a 0.25 percentage point income tax increase to leverage state school construction funding.

The $800 million construction project is under way.

Akron City Council President Marco Sommerville credited Small for helping to sell the unique construction financing to Wall Street bankers and seeing new schools open up around the city.

''That's a testament to his leadership,'' said Sommerville, who has co-chaired the group of city and school leaders overseeing the district's construction project.

Small had said previously that he didn't want to retire until one of those projects — the new Helen Arnold Community Learning Center — opened.

The new elementary school, which is attached to the new Akron Urban League headquarters, opened in August in the Lane Field neighborhood. That area near the Akron Zoo had gone about 30 years without its own elementary school.

Meanwhile, the district improved from academic emergency (a grade of F) on its annual state report card to academic watch (a D grade) in 2004. In 2005, the district boosted its academic performance to ''continuous improvement'' (considered a C grade).

Small helped pass an operating levy in 2001 when he began as superintendent and again last November, staving off economic crisis.

However, the new superintendent will inherit a district with flat revenue, rising expenses due in part to decreasing enrollment and a projected deficit of nearly $30 million in fiscal year 2011, according to the latest five-year forecast.

The deficit more than doubles the following year, to almost $72 million.