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Peabody Schools Superintendent Dies 'Suddenly And Unexpectedly'

PEABODY (CBS) -- Peabody Mayor Ted Bettencourt announced Friday that Peabody School District Superintendent Cara Murtagh has died. He called her death "sudden and unexpected."

"Superintendent Murtagh's talent, energy and can-do spirit inspired all those whose lives she touched," Bettencourt said in a statement. "Her selfless devotion to our students, faculty and staff, combined with her lifelong passion for education, lifted the entire Peabody school community."

Bettencourt said he was proud to be Murtagh's friend and expressed sympathies to her family.

PEABODY SUPERINTENDENT
Former Peabody Superintendent Cara Murtagh (Photo Courtesy: Peabody Schools)

No further information about the circumstances of Murtagh's death have been released.

Visiting hours for Murtagh will be Dec. 5 at Peabody City Hall from 3 to 8 p.m. The district will have an early release day on that day to prepare, with Peabody Veterans Memorial High School dismissing at 11:30 p.m., Higgins Middle school at 12:00 p.m. and all the elementary schools at 12:30 p.m. Parent conferences scheduled for the Higgins Middle School on that day will be postponed to a later date.

Murtagh's funeral will be held Dec. 6. There will be no school for Peabody Schools on that day.

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