Dateline: May 21, 2009

Hedley superintendent settles with district

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise  

Hedley School Superintendent Bryan Hill is looking for a new job following a called meeting of the Hedley CISD Board of Trustees last Thursday.

After meeting in closed session for over an hour, the board voted to “accept the voluntary employment agreement and release between Bryan Hill and Hedley CISD effective June 30, 2009,” according to unofficial minutes obtained by the Enterprise.

“Basically, they renewed my contract, I resigned, and they paid me one year’s salary,” Hill told the paper.

Board members had no comment on the story, but Trustee James E. Potts released a joint press statement Monday which said in part, “An agreement has been reached which allows Mr. Hill the ability to pursue other interests and permits the board to pursue hiring another superintendent.” The statement goes on to say that Hill and the board believe the agreement is “in their respective best interests and the best interests of the district.”

Hill said he will serve out his current contract, which expires at the end of June, but he said the time had come for him to go and that he has started applying for other jobs.

“I hope they fare well,” he said of the board. “If they hire someone, I’ll help them out.”

On the advice of counsel, board members would not discuss Thursday’s motion or its meaning, but Hill said he felt people ought to know what happened. He said his current salary is $71,600.

A call to the school’s attorney, Ann Manning, was not immediately returned Tuesday.

Hill has worked for the Hedley school for 27 years with the past 11 years as superintendent.

In March, the school board voted to “propose non-renewal” of Hill’s contract. The superintendent requested a hearing on that issue, which was scheduled to be held at the board’s regular meeting Saturday. Thursday’s action negated the need for a hearing.

Saturday’s regular school board meeting included mostly ususal business items, although Trustees did take up purchasing an ice machine for the third time in as many meetings and discussed it for over half an hour before finally voting to table it again.

School cafeteria supervisor Sherry Stone said she had been going to get ice from Sonic in Clarendon everyday for the school; but after Saturday’s motion, she said the person making the motion, Trustee Bonnie Walsh, could go get the ice.

“I’m through haulin’ ice,” Stone said and walked out of the meeting.

Trustee Tonja Ruthardt agreed to have extra bags of ice delivered to her Uncle Bob’s convenience store for the school until arrangements could be made for a new ice machine.

In other school business, Trustees accepted the resignations of Coach Terry Collins, effective the end of May, and of teacher Linda Naylor, effective the end of September.