Superintendent contract okayed

New Albany ISD superintendent Jonathan Scott, who has been transitioning to his new duties over the past two weeks, was given authority to hire an interim principal for the elementary campus at the end of Monday’s December school board meeting.

AISD trustees approved Scott’s contract in a special meeting the previous week, giving the new superintendent a commitment until August 2021 at an annual salary of $115,000, prorated for this year.

He had been named the lone finalist out of a list of 41 applicants on Nov. 19, and the board waited the required 21 days before making the decision final on Dec. 11.

Doyleen Terrell, who has served since July, will complete her interim duties this week.

“It has been a joy to serve Albany ISD,” said Terrell on Tuesday. “I have enjoyed my time in the superintendent’s office and I’ve tried to do my best to keep the district going forward and running smoothly.”

Scott mentioned that he has already started the process of filling the vacancy he is leaving in the Nancy Smith Elementary School principal’s office.

“I hope to have someone in place for the beginning of the spring semester,” he said, adding that he is considering retired administrators who can work part-time to finish out the school year.

The NSES job will be posted in February, Scott said, with plans for a new principal to start those duties in June.

In other business during Monday’s mostly routine meeting, the trustees accepted an end-of-year anonymous donation for $200,000. The funding will be relocated to the Academic Booster Club once the organization obtains its nonprofit status.