|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
News
'A hiccup in the road' : News : Oswego Ledger-Sentinel : Hometown Newspaper for Oswego and Montgomery, Illinois'A hiccup in the road'
| Wendt sites 'breakdown in understanding' with Iowa board
| by Lyle R. Rolfe
| 6/21/2012
|
The Oswego School District Board voted 6-0 May 31 to approve a three-year contract with Dr. Matthew Wendt of Ankeny, Iowa, to serve as school superintendent.
The school board's vote came just one day after Wendt's current employer, the Ankeny School Board voted to offer Wendt a one-year contract extension with a 3.25 percent raise or an opportunity to resign as superintendent June 30. The resignation offer included a severance payment of $176,513 to Wendt.
The Oswego School District Board called its May 31 special meeting to approve its contract with Wendt on May 29, the day before Ankeny School Board voted to accept Wendt's resignation and severance payment.
Some Ankeny School Board and community members cried foul when Wendt signed a three-year contract with the Oswego School District the day after they accepted his resignation and approved the severance payment.
Since then, Wendt has been a subject of controversy in Ankeny, gracing the front pages of Iowa newspapers and TV screens.
Some Ankeny School Board members have said they do not believe Wendt deserves the severance payment and he should return it since he has signed a new contract in Oswego.
Wendt said last week the Ankeny contract issue has not been a problem with the Oswego School District Board.
When asked about the situation, Wendt said, "My only comment is that I negotiated a contract with the (Ankeny) school board president and attorney. I'm very confident that all of us at the table understood what the contract and agreements said and the intent behind those.
"Unfortunately there has been a breakdown of understanding but there certainly hasn't been a breakdown on understanding on my part. I was offered a contract."
He continued, "I'm a superintendent in good standing. I'm a vice chair of the state superintendent's organization. I've had outstanding evaluations. I was invited to come back with a contract and I could have accepted that offer. I had a two-year severance and I negotiated it down to a one year.
"In my decision to aggressively seek other employment-the timing of my resignation and the acceptance of another contract happened to be closer aligned in date than maybe what some thought. But the question of alignment of the date should not influence the intent that was a part of those contractual negotiations.
"I would do everything the way I did it, again. I've done nothing wrong. I've been upfront; I've been honest," Wendt said, adding, "I do regret that there's been so much publicity over it. But I think it's a hiccup in the road and I'm more than happy to move forward," he said.
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
|
