The Switzerland County School Board on Monday night officially stopped the rollover provision in the contract of superintendent Tracy Caddell.
The superintendent had been given a five year rollover provision two years ago, but that was canceled on Monday night. The move means that – if nothing is changed – the superintendent’s contract will expire in 2012.
The measure was added to the board’s agenda at the start of Monday night’s meeting, and the matter was moved by Vern Waltz, seconded by Virgil McKay, and unanimously approved by the school board members without comment.
The superintendent also had no comment on the matter during the meeting; but it was the topic of conversation during public comments.
Resident Herb Rohmann asked during the public comments section of the meeting – which took place prior to the discussion by the board involving the stopping of the rollover provision – that public comments be moved to after the personnel section of the meeting, but the board chose to leave the agenda as it was.
Herb Rohmann then chose to express his opinions prior to the rollover vote.
“What does the cessation of the rollover contract mean?” Herb Rohmann asked the board. “Is it a vote of no confidence in the superintendent?”
He then told the board that he felt that the leadership of the entire school corporation was in peril.
“When there is a person in place as the head educator, which the superintendent is, and there is a lack of leadership, then everything suffers, especially the children,” Herb Rohmann said. “I don’t attack him personally, but I question his leadership.”
But the biggest questions were left unanswered, as the board did not respond to any of the questions that Herb Rohmann asked.
“Is he leaving?” Herb Rohmann asked the board. “Is he going to get some training as to how he deals with people? What does the cessation of the rollover mean? Does it mean that he will stay until the end of his contract?”
Herb Rohmann said that he had spoken with a resident of the county, and that person told him that many people were concerned about the superintendent, but “…That 90-percent are scared…” to say anything out of fear that a family member working in the system or a student would suffer repercussions.
“I think it’s time for him to move on,” Herb Rohmann said.