ROGERS -- Marlin Berry will take over as the School District's superintendent July 1.
Berry, superintendent of the Olathe School District in Kansas since 2010, accepted the Rogers superintendent's job late Wednesday. The School Board held a special meeting Thursday and voted to accept the terms of his contract, which will pay Berry $215,754 per year through June 2019.
The contract
Some highlights of the contract the Rogers School Board signed this week with its next superintendent, Marlin Berry:
• Effective July 1 through June 30, 2019
• Annual salary of $215,754
• Annual car allowance of $9,000
• Annual cellphone allowance of $1,500
• Health insurance through the Arkansas Employee Benefit Division
• The superintendent is “encouraged to participate in community and civic affairs.”
• The board will evaluate and assess in writing Berry’s performance at least once during the term of the contract.
Source: Staff report
The Olathe School Board also was scheduled to hold its monthly meeting Thursday night. Berry was expected to submit his resignation to the Olathe board during that meeting, according to Kristen Cobbs, president of the Rogers board.
The Rogers board offered the job to Berry on Tuesday after interviewing him for the second time. He was one of 61 people who applied for the position and one of four people who interviewed with the board last week.
Berry will replace Janie Darr, who is retiring this summer after 17 years as the district's superintendent. Berry has a combined 22 years of experience as a superintendent in Olathe and two other Kansas districts.
Berry couldn't be reached for comment Thursday.
Cobbs read a statement at Thursday's meeting after the board had approved Berry's contract. Berry will bring "a wealth of experience, knowledge and leadership qualities that will help build on the success of the Rogers schools," she said.
Though Berry agreed to take the job Wednesday, neither side announced the deal until Thursday's board meeting because the contract hadn't been settled, Cobbs said.
"We finally got it signed at about 3 p.m. (Thursday)," she said. "We were going back and forth fine-tuning the contract."
The board also agreed to pay Berry's moving expenses.
The contract doesn't differ significantly from what Darr has. Cobbs said Berry makes more money as Olathe's superintendent than what the Rogers job will pay him, though she didn't know exactly how much more.
Mayor Greg Hines had a chance to meet Berry and talk to him for about 45 minutes Tuesday. Hines said he believes the board made a good choice.
"He couldn't have a more stellar resume," Hines said. "But more important is the man behind the resume, and I feel like in the short time I got to visit with him, I got to know that person a little bit. He was able to articulate to me that he gets where we're at and where we want to be."
Berry also seems to appreciate the good relationship the district and city have had for a long time, Hines said.
"And I think there's little doubt that he will carry on that tradition in a meaningful way," he said.
Darr announced in December her intention to retire. The board began the process of finding her replacement two days later. In January the board hired Ray and Associates, an Iowa firm, to assist with the search.
Their interview with Berry last week convinced board members he was the best person for the job, Cobbs said.
"Once we met him in person, it was clear he was very confident and a quality leader," she said.
The Olathe School District serves about 30,000 students and is the second-largest district in Kansas. Rogers has an enrollment of about 15,000.
Berry holds a doctorate in education policy and administration from the University of Kansas. He was Kansas superintendent of the year for 2013.
Rogers isn't the only big school district in Northwest Arkansas that will see a change in leadership this summer. The Fayetteville School Board hired Matthew Wendt, a superintendent in Oswego, Ill., for its top position in January.
NW News on 04/08/2016