Tuesday, September 11, 2012
The settlement drops the Ankeny, Iowa district's lawsuit against former Superintendent Matthew Wendt and cuts in half the amount of transition pay he will receive from Ankeny Schools.
Oswego School Disrict 308 Matthew Wendt and his former school district in Ankeny, Iowa have settled their legal dispute over the amount of severance pay Wendt is entitled to, the Ankeny school board announced Monday night. Following a closed session, the Ankeny board voted 7-0 to approve the settlement with Wendt. It cuts the amount of his severance package in half, from a year's pay to six months salary. The total is about $88,000 or $14,709 a month; down from the previous severance package of $176,000. Wendt and the district will pay their own legal fees. The settlement also says that Wendt, along with the school board, must not publicly disparage the others. A breach of that agreement would pay $14,709 per comment. The district's …
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
The local business will be giving free eye exams and glasses to those in need at Oswego schools.
Oswego Vision Ltd announced its 25 anniversary serving Oswegoland and the surrounding communities with specialized eye care services. The company was founded in 1987 by Dr. Alan E. Hein with the vision of offering personalized, quality eye care to the community at reasonable prices. Over the years, the company has expanded and moved its office space from Oswego’s Main Street to its current location on Templeton Drive. As part of the anniversary celebration, Oswego Vision Ltd. announced a partnership with the Essilor Vision Foundation and the Adopt-a-School program. The program kicks off this fall, and Oswego Vision Ltd. will participate by sending eye doctors into Oswego public schools to provide free on-site eye exams and glasses to …
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
The AYP scores and resulting failure of six schools in the district open up Choice options as well.
When the Fiscal Year 2013 budget was announced with a $5.5 million deficit at the August 13 Oswego District 308 Board of Education meeting, that number was riding on the assumption that there were 17,561 students enrolled in District 308. Superintendent Matthew Wendt announced at the August 27 board meeting that number has now inflated to 17,739 students and that nearly 500 new students have joined the district. District 308 is expecting to see enrollments through August and even potentially past Labor Day. With the increase in students, the district is working to keep classrooms balanced. Wendt said there are highs and lows in class sizes across the district, but in terms of core classes at the junior high level they are trying to keep …
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
Amanda Rider and Ashley Meyers begin their new positions at Southbury Elementary and Plank Junior High, respectively.
Editor's Note: The following is taken from a press release provided by Oswego School District 308. Monday night, the District 308 Board of Education filled two assistant principal positions, including one internal promotion. Both Amanda Rider and Ashley Meyers began their administrative positions with the school district on August 14. “We had many great applicants for the assistant principal positions that were filled on Monday night,” said Executive Director of Administrative Services John Sparlin. “Both Amanda and Ashley possess leadership qualities associated with highly effective people. They both are student centered, knowledgeable and passionate educators who will be effective leaders in District 308.” Of the 78 applicants for the…
Friday, June 1, 2012
Matthew Wendt comes to Oswego from a similar district in Iowa, where he pushed for academic excellence and managed unprecedented growth. Here's how he sees his new role in District 308.
Matthew Wendt says he wasn’t looking for a new job. He already has a job he loves. For the past five years, he’s served as superintendent of the Ankeny Community School District, the 10th largest district in Iowa. His time there has seen unprecedented growth, both in the size of the district and in the academic achievement of the students. So when search firm Ray and Associates contacted him, he wasn’t sure that he was interested. The company had been hired by the Oswego School District to find qualified candidates to succeed Superintendent Dan O’Donnell, who resigned in February. When they told Wendt about the Oswego district, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of the familiar. “It sounded like the district I was in,” he said. “Boundary …
J Goodsmith
9:46 am on Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Dale - I'm sorry you are so uninformed. Go to the Des Monies Register web site, download the contact and read it. The original agreement offered 2 years 'transition' if he left for any reason. The amended contract offered him to continue working for Ankeny, or a one year transition payment if - repeat if, he acted before July 2012 - which he did. I'm more upset that he decided to end the nonsense… more ›