Anchorage, Alaska — The superintendent of the Mat-Su School District passed away early Saturday morning, according to a letter from the district's school board president, Mike Dunleavy.
The letter said Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Burnley died from complications following surgery earlier in the week.
"All indications were that things were going to be fine and I received a phone call this morning at 4 a.m. in the morning saying he had passed away," said Dunleavy during a phone interview.
Burnley was hired in April 2010 and moved to the Mat-Su Borough in June of that year.
"I'm not exaggerating it's almost too exhaustive to list," said Dunleavy, when he talked about what Dr. Burnley had done for the school district.
He was previously superintendent of the Fairbanks North Star Borough school district, and also held the position of superintendent in Colorado Springs and Detroit.
"He just liked the idea of coming back to Alaska, his wife loved Alaska and he did and I think it was a great opportunity," said Anchorage School District Superintendent Carol Comeau. "I think he will be missed by people all over the country when they find out about this."
