Former Grand Rapids schools superintendent gets $280,000 to settle lawsuit with district

Bernard Taylor Jr. ran what’s now the state’s fifth-largest K-12 district for five years. Eventually, Taylor and some members of the school board did not get along very well. By in the spring of 2011, it became clear Taylor was looking for a new job. He agreed to resign that summer and ended up signing a severance package. But last month Taylor sued, claiming the district never paid him. He calculated GRPS owed him $330,000 including lawyer’s fees. Tuesday night the Grand Rapids school board and Taylor agreed to settle the lawsuit for $50,000 less than that. Neither party would comment on the case.