Rachel Talbot Ross, the longtime director of Portland’s Equal Opportunity and Multicultural Affairs department, has announced her resignation, according to documents released Wednesday by city officials.

“It is with a heavy heart that I write to inform you of my decision to resign from my position with the City of Portland, effective December 11, 2015,” Talbot Ross wrote letter to city officials. “After much reflection, I have decided that it is time for me to focus on other endeavors that require my full-time attention.”

On Wednesday, in response to a Freedom of Access request, the city released her undated resignation letter and a letter of separation signed Oct. 7 by Talbot Ross and City Manager Jon Jennings.

City officials said last week that Talbot Ross, who has held the position for 21 years, began a paid leave of absence Aug. 27 for an indefinite period. Officials and Talbot Ross said last week that they could not discuss the circumstances of her leave.

While the city provided the resignation letter, it refused requests for other city records that might provide information about the leave, saying they contain confidential lawyer-client communications and personnel information.

Talbot Ross is president of the Portland chapter of the NAACP and her family has long ties to public service and the civil rights movement in Maine. Her father, former state Rep. Gerald Talbot of Portland, was Maine’s first black legislator. Her sister, Regina Phillips, is director of the city’s Refugee Services Program.

The director of multicultural affairs, who reports to the city manager and has no staff, serves as a link between city government and immigrants, helping them deal with government bureaucracy. The position was scrutinized in 2010, when budget pressures led to an unsuccessful proposal to turn the $59,700-a-year full-time position into a part-time position. The position now pays $72,033 a year.

The city is required by federal law to maintain certain aspects of the director’s job, such as having an equal opportunity representative. Grondin said no single person is filling in for Talbot Ross during the leave, but parts of the job are being handled by others.

Talbot Ross did not return calls late Wednesday seeking comment.

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