With elementary principal Matthew Connelly already in his role as interim superintendent ahead of the July 1st start of his regular superintendent duties, the Deckerville School Board of Education hired Aaron Sutherland as the district’s next elementary school principal during Monday night’s board meeting.
The June 26 meeting saw the board go into closed session about personnel issues prior to a school budget presentation with the school’s business manager Marsha Taylor. The board approved both the past year’s final budget and the initial budget for the 2023-2024 school year, as well as approved a 4% raise for district teachers.
In addition to hiring Aaron Sutherland as the new elementary principal, the board also filled four teaching positions and extended the contracts for the transportation supervisor Ron Webb and bus maintenance provider Keinath Tire. Sutherland, as well as Superintendent Connelly, received approval by the board for three year administrator contracts beginning July 1, 2023 and ending on June 30, 2026. The board also approved the administrator stipend for Connelly’s work as interim superintendent from May 23, 2023 through June 30, 2023. In addition to those contract extensions, the board also extended the contract of Josh Stern, High School Principal, through the 2025-26 school year.
Also approved at Monday night’s meeting were two bond projects, including an almost $20,000 installation of window security film at the school buildings’ points of entry, with about $25,000 approved to be spent on two 3D printers, 3 laptops to link with 3D printers, ipads to run iRobot coding program, iRobots, Virtual Reality Oculus goggles, building block kits and STEM kits for Young 5 classes through 4th grade.
The Deckerville board will be meeting again on Monday, July 24 for the first board meeting of the 2023- 2024 school year.
