NORWICH – Superintendent Gerard O’Sullivan will remain with the Norwich school district for five more years, according to the terms of a contract approved by the board of education Wednesday night.
The contract will extend through June 30, 2015. O’Sullivan received no salary increase under the terms of the agreement. He currently receives $152,743 in compensation per year. His most recent raise, of 3 percent, was awarded in September when his contract was last renewed.
The board voted to approve the new agreement by a vote of 4 to 3, with board members Sally Chirlin, Priscilla Johnson and Tom Morrone dissenting.
The decision was made following a heated public comment, in which several community members registered their concerns over the superintendent’s contract extension being on the agenda at all.
Board member-elect Linda Horovitz hoisted a packet she said contained letters she’d received from teachers.
“Our morale is worse than ever,” she said.
Horovitz went on to say she had spent the day contacting other districts to learn what school boards do at their final meeting.
The message she said she got from each of the more than 20 schools she contacted was that no major decisions were made at the last meeting. Doing otherwise, she said, would be considered “unethical,” “vindictive” and “unprofessional.”
Retired district employee Paula Evans “strongly recommended that no contracts be extended” by the board. She was echoed by community member Pete Smith, who asked that the items be postponed until the new board was seated.
