Board ends Scala's contract

~See Superintendent Scala's contract

Cape Girardeau School District superintendent Dr. David Scala has been placed on administrative leave effective Tuesday and his contract will be terminated Dec. 19, the Board of Education voted unanimously in a late-night closed session Monday.

Board president Dr. Steven Trautwein said he couldn't go into details about the board's reasoning, saying the decision was "to the advantage of the district and to Dr. Scala."

"This was a decision the board made after consulting with him," Trautwein said.

Scala said there is a provision in his contract that allows for termination without cause. He will continue to be paid a full year's salary of $139,204.

Assistant superintendent Pat Fanger will take over until an interim superintendent is found.

Trautwein said interim superintendents typically are retired former superintendents and would most likely not be hired permanently.

Board vice president Kyle McDonald said the board already has someone in mind and will know by Monday whether the person has accepted the position. He did not name the candidate.

McDonald said the board wants a new superintendent before February and March evaluations of central office staff, principals and assistant principals are conducted so the staff is of the superintendent's "own choosing instead of staff in place already when they get there." Contracts are typically offered in April.

When asked if it would be fair to have a superintendent conduct evaluations after potentially only working a month, McDonald said, "I would say yes. They can look at the progress being made in the school." He said this includes test scores, also noting that Fanger helps conduct the evaluations.

In February, the board extended Scala's three-year contract by two years, through June 2010.

But on Oct. 15, Scala, 62, announced he would retire at the end of the year. Board members hired the Missouri School Board Association to help them conduct a search for a new superintendent and hope a replacement can be found by January.

Scala's termination comes amid the budget planning process. The night he announced his retirement, board members postponed action on a budget they said was riddled with errors.

Former director of finance Brenda McCowan, who presented the budget, said a computer error caused numbers to be incorrect.

On Nov. 5, board members learned of three financial issues during a report on an audit for the year ending June 30. According to the audit, payments of about $2.5 million were made but never recorded, expenditures of the special revenue fund broke state budget law by exceeding budgetary limits by more than $363,000, and deficit budgeting occurred in two funds, also against state law.

At that meeting, the board hired Misty Clifton, formerly a payroll manager at Southeast Missouri State University, to be the district's new director of finance. Brenda McCowan now serves as the district's coordinator of federal programs and grants.

A new budget was presented by McCowan, with computations based on a tax levy of $4.16 per $100 assessed value. The board decided again to postpone approval to allow Clifton time to review.

Clifton told the board Monday that the tax levy was actually $4.03 per $100 assessed value because the state constitution requires the levy to be reduced when property values rise faster than inflation. This resulted in the district receiving about $700,000 less than anticipated.

Estimated operating revenue is listed as $45.7 million in the Nov. 5 version of the budget, while in the one approved by the board Monday, prepared by Clifton, the total is $41.3 million.

Both Trautwein and Scala said the district's finances were not the cause of his termination.

Instead, Trautwein said the decision will make the transition to a new superintendent easier.

"Arriving on July 1, which is customary, is really difficult for a new superintendent because all the decisions that are going to be in place for the next year have already been made. Contracts have been signed, evaluations have been made and recommendations to the board about programmatic decisions have been already made," he said.

Trautwein hopes a new superintendent could start as soon as January, although he is aware it is unlikely a superintendent in good standing would be able to exit his current contract to begin working in Cape Girardeau.

The district has had four superintendents in 11 years. Board members expressed a desire Monday to hire a superintendent looking to stay for the long haul.

lbavolek@semissourian.com

335-6611, extension 123