Grand Jury Declines to Indict Principal Accused of Endangering a Student

In a case that roiled a racially diverse town in New Jersey for months, a high school principal is one step closer to getting his job back.

A grand jury in New Jersey dismissed charges on Wednesday against the high school principal who had been accused of endangering a student, in a racially charged case that roiled the liberal, diverse towns of South Orange and Maplewood.

The principal, Frank Sanchez, 50, remains in professional limbo. In May, with charges hanging over him, the district did not renew his contract; he remains on paid administrative leave, which ends this month. He plans to appeal the school board’s decision and ask it to reappoint him.

“This has been a difficult time of my life,” Mr. Sanchez said on Thursday. “Being an educator defined me for a long time, and not being able to do that for several months was extremely difficult. There were days where it was dark.”

The school district’s acting superintendent, Dr. Kevin F. Gilbert, called the grand jury decision “welcome news to the many families and students who have been looking forward to welcoming Frank Sanchez back to Columbia High School.”

The case divided the school district, which has a longstanding achievement gap between white and Black students, despite years of civil rights lawsuits and programs to address the disparities.

The student who accused Mr. Sanchez is no longer at the school. Since Mr. Sanchez’s arrest in March, she has had to live in town amid lawn signs supporting Mr. Sanchez as well as rallies of parents behind him.