Aurora school board moves forward with two year extension for superintendent’s contract

Aurora’s superintendent will get a chance to lead the district for another two years.

The Aurora school board reviewed details of a proposed contract extension at a board meeting Tuesday night. The board is expected to vote on the contract at their following meeting in two weeks and are expected to approve it.

There was no discussion about the proposed contract extension Tuesday. Board president Marques Ivey had stated his support for Munn when he announced the board’s intention to extend the superintendent’s contract last month.

Some observers had wondered what the new board would mean for the future of the district and of the superintendent. Four of the seven board members were first elected in November as part of a union-backed slate.

One district teacher who spoke during public comment told the board he was disappointed in the new board members’ decision to keep the same leadership in the district by extending the superintendent’s contract. He asked the board to reconsider.

The proposed contract extension does not change much from the contract signed in 2016, which was set to expire this summer.

In it, the school board sets Munn’s base salary on July 1 at his current salary of $236,391. But it also states that his salary will be adjusted on that same day, July 1.

Under the contract, Munn has the opportunity for annual salary increases tied to his evaluations, as well as to the salary increases available to all other administrative staff. For instance, if the superintendent’s evaluation by the board indicates “the preponderance of scores are ‘Consistently Meets,’ he shall receive the maximum percentage annual increase available” to administrative staff.

The contract also makes Munn eligible for a bonus of up to 10 percent of his salary for every year that the school district’s state performance rating improves.

The Aurora district did move up a rating category this year by earning a state rating of “improvement,” which also meant the district is no longer at risk of facing state sanctions next year for low performance.