From assistant to interim to full-fledged superintendent, Gary Neal can now add returning superintendent to his resumé.
In July, Sequim School Board members approved a contract extension for Neal to continue as the school district’s top administrator.
As with previous superintendents, Neal’s is a three-year contract that employs him through June 30, 2019, though the board, by contract, is required to discuss the superintendent’s performance and working relationship with the board twice per year.
Sequim school board members also are required to review the superintendent’s employment status prior to Feb. 1, 2017, to determine whether to offer another year-long extension of the contract or allow the contract to continue toward its expiration date.
“I want a rotating contract,” Neal said. “There are things (we’re doing now) that will take more than three years.”
Neal’s contract calls for a base salary of $139,256 for the 2016-2017 school year, $143,273 for 2017-2018 and $145,951 in 2018-2019. The contract also includes an $800-per-month payment into a tax-sheltered annuity program. Included is a $600-per-month reimbursement for travel expenses and an $85-per-month cellphone stipend.
The contract requires Neal to work 215 days per year and grants 30 vacation days.
“They can be happy, I can be happy (with this contract),” Neal said. “It was a vote of confidence.”
Neal was Sequim’s assistant superintendent in 2014-2015 behind then superintendent Kelly Shea and originally applied for the top post when Shea announced he was taking a job with East Valley (Spokane). Neal was not named among the finalists for Shea’s replacement, but after the board balked at two semifinalists, the board promoted Neal as interim superintendent in May 2015.
Neal served as interim superintendent for the better part of half a school year before the board elevated him to the permanent role in November 2015.
Neal was principal of West Valley High School in Spokane from 2006-2014. He has a superintendent’s certificate from Washington State University and a master’s degree in administration and curriculum from Gonzaga University.
