LEBANON - Superintendent Jim Robinson says he's proud of the decade of service he's given the Lebanon Community School District and "OK" with the agreement Monday that brought it to an end.

Robinson, 60, signed a resignation agreement Monday with the Lebanon School Board, effective immediately. He did not appear at the board's meeting and made no public statement but spoke afterwards in a short press conference.

Board members had voted unanimously in a special meeting in September to enter negotiations for the superintendent's resignation.

Robinson said he decided to agree because he was comfortable with the financial terms of the agreement and saw no advantage to either attempting to remain in his job or take legal action if removed.

"You consider, under the law, what's to be gained by not resigning," he said, citing as an example, "Turmoil in town, which this town has long needed respite from."

It's rare for superintendents to spend more than a few years in one place, he added, and "transition points" are common.

"You sort of grow accustomed to that possibility," he said. "It's arrived again. I'm OK with that."

Hired in 1998, Robinson's 10 years have been marked by controversy.

Voters passed a $50 million bond measure during his tenure, which paid for the construction of Riverview and Pioneer schools. The dropout rate, which was at 11.3 percent in 1997-98, was at 4.6 percent as of 2006-07. Most elementary and middle school test scores are above the state average, although high school math scores continue to sag.

But parents and students have directed scathing criticism at Robinson's reorganization of Lebanon High School, which became four "systems" in 2003. Teachers took an overwhelming vote of no confidence in Robinson in 2004, citing "oppressive" leadership. A 2007 decision to bring popular high school athletic director Bo Yates back to a full-time job at Seven Oak Middle School also drew public fire.

This fall, parents took Robinson to task for declaring an "academic emergency" about high school math achievement, saying he should have done something to improve test scores years ago.

Robinsin said he would have liked to continue working on high school achievement. However, he said, he believes in the decisions he's made and that it would be "fruitless to guess" what, if anything, should have been done differently.

"All of us are imperfect," he said.

Robinson said he has no immediate plans to seek new work, although he did not rule out the possibility of applying elsewhere as a superintendent.

He said he wishes the community of Lebanon the best and hopes his departure will help defuse some of the anger.

"It affects it, but it doesn't end it," he said. "There are deep divisions in the community, and it's going to take a while for the community to resolve."