President Cristina Pickle and Vice President Scott Huddle opposed the move while members Julie Denning, A.J. Ricker and Marilyn Steiner supported it, according to the district.
The new contract voted on Monday night calls for a $153,262 annual salary — Wyen’s current compensation — from Aug. 1, 2023, through July 31, 2027, district records show.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
“Generally speaking, there are no financial incentives initially added to the superintendent’s contract extension,” Pickle said in an email. “Any financial increase would come with board approval if/when raises are approved for district employees.”
Denning said she voted for the contract because Wyen is “doing a great job.” Pickle did not specifically comment on her vote. Attempts to reach other board members on their votes were unsuccessful.
The contract was placed on this week’s agenda by Wyen ahead of his scheduled December performance evaluation, Pickle said.
Wyen said in an email that he is “excited to be able to continue to work in such an amazing school district and community. Mad River is where I began my career as a student teacher, and it is where I plan to continue until I retire. I am blessed to be part of Mad River Local Schools.”
Wyen’s 2021 evaluation was signed by all current board members except Ricker, who was elected last November and took office later. The evaluation stated “there needs to be a ‘sense of urgency’ created with overall district performance.”
“While it is true we are seeing internal improvement, there comes a time when those internal results need to also be reflected on our results provided to the state report card,” according to the evaluation. “Our performance on the state report card is not reflected in the academic improvement that we expect to see. The time is now.”
The evaluation included favorable remarks in three of the four goals for 2020-21, noting a 90% graduation target fell “just short” at 86.8%.
It also called Wyen’s failure to request board approval for a club started in 2020 at Mad River Middle School “inexcusable.” The evaluation did not elaborate about the purpose of the club, and a district spokeswoman only said it is not currently active.
The evaluation also outlined a series of 2021-22 goals ranging from students achieving “benchmark” targets to attendance and graduation rates, as well as more parental involvement at buildings.
When asked if Wyen had addressed the most recent evaluation’s goals, Denning said, “I think that the majority of us felt like he had been doing his job and moving forward.
“And we were happy with where we were coming off the pandemic. And we wanted to keep him on and renew his contract,” she added.
Pickle said questions about the superintendent’s performance “can only be answered once the board meets collectively to review” it and set goals for next year.
Wyen has been Mad River’s superintendent since 2014 and has worked for the district for more than 20 years. Before his current job, he was Mad River’s special education/curriculum director.
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