According to a contract approved by the Mahomet-Seymour Board of Education Wednesday night, Superintendent Lindsey Hall intends to retire on June 30, 2023.
The contract is an update to the 5-year agreement the board and Hall came to in 2018. It is not unusual for the district to give staff salary increases as they approach retirement. Within the Mahomet-Seymour Education Association (Union) contract, teachers who have served in the district for a minimum of 10 years preceding retirement, provides written notice to the superintendent of his or her intention to retire and participate in the program either four years, three years, two years, or one year prior to the first day of February of their final year of active service and retires by the end of the school year in which he or she first gains eligibility to receive a TRS annuity can receive the early retirement incentive.
A 2019 Memorandum of Understanding between the district and the union states that the retirement incentive will be up to 4 years of a 5.5-percent increase in year one, two, three or four.
In the new contract, Hall’s base salary increased to $214,404.75 (a $4492.75 increase) from July 1, 2021 – June 30, 2022 and $225,124.99 (a 9334.99 increase) from July 1, 2022 – June 30, 2023. Hall’s raises in the final two years will be 5-percent.
Hall stated that her letter of resignation, as cited in the contract, would come at a later date.
Language in the contract related to goals and performance were also changed over the last week.
Previously, the Superintendent’s contract bound the leader’s performance to the Illinois School Code:
The Superintendent acknowledges that pursuant to Section 10-23.8 of The School Code, 105 ILCS 5/10-23.8, this multi-year contract is subject to performance-based goals and indicators. The Parties agree the goals and indicators are linked to student performance and academic improvement of the schools within the District. Annually, the Superintendent, with the assistance of her administrative team, shall: (1) evaluate the assessment results of standardized tests given by the District and the State and annually present recommendations to the Board for the improvement of such results; (2) evaluate the District’s curriculum and annually make recommendations to the Board to ensure that the District’s curriculum is aligned to the appropriate standards as required by the Illinois State Board of Education; (3) evaluate student attendance and drop-out rates and annually recommend to the Board a plan to improve student attendance and graduation rates; (4) direct the evaluation of textbooks and other instructional materials to ensure that all materials are up to date and 3 appropriate; and (5) evaluate the district technology plan and annually recommend improvements thereto to the Board. Prior to the end of October in each subsequent year of this Contract, the Board and the Superintendent shall establish such additional student performance and academic improvement goals including the indicators of student performance and academic improvement determined to measure such goals as the parties deem necessary for the then current school year, a copy of which shall be attached hereto as Exhibit B and incorporated herein. During the term of this Contract, the parties may mutually agree to modifications of the Superintendent’s evaluation criteria by a written amendment of Exhibit B signed by both parties. It is provided, however, that by so doing, it shall not be considered that the Board has entered into a new Contract with the Superintendent or that the termination date of this Agreement has been in any way extended.
Now Paragraph 7 of the contract reads:
This is a performance-based contract, the goals of which are set forth in the attached Exhibit B and will replace any outstanding existing goals in the Contract. Accomplishment of the goals, as may be amended from time to time, will enhance student performance and achieve academic improvement. Along with the evaluation criteria set forth in paragraph 6 of the Contract, a primary measure of the performance and effectiveness of the Superintendent each contract year shall be whether the Superintendent has accomplished the goals for that contract year and has made adequate progress toward completion of the goals which are to be accomplished in a later contract year, as such goals are set by the Board and the Superintendent. By June 30 of each contract year, the Superintendent and Board will collaboratively review and revise, where appropriate, the goals to be accomplished during the remaining contract years. Any modified goals shall be incorporated into a document to be entitled “Superintendent’s Performance Goals,” which shall be signed and dated by the Board President and the Superintendent and become the Superintendent’s new and/or additional goals for purposes of this contract.
Paragraph 8, the Extension of Term was deleted and Paragraph 17, titled vacation was modified.
The contract presented to the Board of Education last week read:
VACATION. The Superintendent shall be entitled to twenty (20) working days of vacation annually, in each year of this Contract, exclusive of legal holidays. Vacation shall be taken subject to approval of the Board and shall be taken within twelve (12) months of the year in which it is earned. Prior to the end of the 2020-2021 contract year, the Superintendent may exchange any unused vacation days (including partial days thereof) for a cash payment at her per diem rate up to such amount that would allow a 6% increase in TRS creditable earnings from the previous contract year. In subsequent contract years, any unused vacation days shall be used as vacation time or lost on July 1 of the Contract year.
The board approved contract reads:
The Superintendent shall be entitled to twenty (20) working days of vacation annually, in each year of this Contract, exclusive of legal holidays. Vacation shall be taken subject to approval of the Board and shall be taken within twelve (12) months of the year in which it is earned. Prior to the end of the 2020-2021 contract year, the Superintendent may exchange any unused vacation days (including partial days thereof) for a cash payment at her per diem rate up to such amount that would allow a 6% increase in TRS creditable earnings from the previous contract year. In subsequent contract years, any unused vacation days shall be used as vacation time or lost on July 1 of the Contract year.
The board voted 5-1 to approve the contract. Merle Giles, Ken Keefe, Lori Larson and Max McComb voted in favor. Meghan Hennesy voted no.
McComb also took a few minutes at Monday’s regular meeting to praise Hall for being recognized by the Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA).
Twenty-one superintendents across Illinois named 2020 Superintendents of Distinction were honored this fall during a virtual ceremony. Superintendents of Distinction are selected by their peers in each of the 21 different IASA regions based on leadership, communication, professionalism and community involvement.
Hall earned the honor in the Illini Region.
The April 15 and April 21 (approved) contract are shown below.
