After a very public year and a half as Chief Financial Officer of the St Joseph School District, Beau Musser says he’s looking forward to getting out of the public spotlight.

“I’ve lived an incredibly public life for the last year and a half,” Musser says in an interview.

“I am looking forward to not having that public life.

“It’s not something that I was ever looking forward to, and the way it happened, it certainly wasn’t pleasant. So I am looking forward to not being in the public spotlight all the time.”

The school district announced his departure on Thursday, effective next month.

The district went through some dramatic changes during Mr Musser’s tenure. It was his persistent questions that led to revelations the district had misspent millions of dollars for decades. The Missouri State Auditor released an eye-opening report earlier this year, in which the district received a rating of “poor.” Top administrators have been fired, and a former superintendent resigned his seat on the school board.

“It was a wild ride for me,” Musser said. “The job has just changed.”

“I’m not really utilizing my skill set in a way that provides me satisfaction with the work that I’m doing on a day-to-day basis, and so, at this point in my career, I think, without a doubt, my skill set will be very much better served in the private sector.”

Musser says his connection with the school district is changing, but not going away.

“You know I’ve got a daughter who’s five and a son who is two and a half. My daughter will be starting kindergarten next year in the St Joseph School District. My son will be starting a few years behind her.”

“I’m vested in this community, my kids will go to school here, and I want the best for our local school district.”

Musser has not said where he’ll be working next, but he assures us it will be in the private sector, and he says over time “it will become obvious” where he’s working.