New Hanover County Schools’ superintendent has the job for another four years, if he wants to stay. Tuesday the board of education voted 4-3 to extend Tim Markley’s contract through June 2019.
Chairman Don Hayes said the board is generally pleased with Markley’s performance and “the direction our school system is taking.”
Hayes read a brief statement, citing Markley’s role in the passage of a $160 million bond issue in 2014, as well as the superintendent’s focus on improving graduation rates and test scores.
None of Hayes’ fellow board members disagreed with his assessment, but Lisa Estep objected to a two-year extension.
“I will not be voting for this,” she said. Her position had nothing to do with Markley’s performance, she said, but she disagreed with the length of the contract.
Board member Tammy Covil echoed that sentiment.
“I think Dr. Markley has done a fantastic job,” she said, citing in particular efforts to bridge a “communication gap” that had existed. But a contract of more than one year puts the board in a difficult position, Covil said.
It is a long-standing practice in education to approve multiple-year contracts for superintendents. In the not-so-distant past, failure to extend a contract was taken as a vote of no confidence. More recently, many voters and public officials have taken the position that long-term extensions are problematic because they obligate school districts to pay out a contract unless the superintendent is fired for reasons other than misconduct or a criminal act.
Board member Bruce Shell, who did not comment during the discussion on Markley’s contract, was the third dissenting vote. Hayes, Janice Cavenaugh, Ed Higgins and Jeannette Nichols voted to approve the two-year extension. Prior to Tuesday’s action, Markley’s contract was set to expire in 2017.
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