As the school board unanimously voted to extend Reginald Mayo’s contract, one educator hailed him as a “fabulous leader,” and the mayor promised three more “truly incredible years.”
The vote took place Wednesday evening at 54 Meadow St., where the Board of Education held a special meeting to consider whether to rehire Superintendent Mayo for another three years.
The board retired behind closed doors for 15 minutes, then emerged and took a unanimous 6 – 0 vote to approve the new contract.
Mayo’s salary will remain at $226,921, without a raise next fiscal year. His last contract, which expires July 1, gave him 5 percent raises each year. In the wake of budget troubles, he agreed to take only a 2 percent raise last year.
Before taking a vote, Mayor John DeStefano commended the man he’s kept by his side ever since his first successful mayoral election in 1993. Mayo has been superintendent since 1992.
In brief remarks, DeStefano credited “Reggie and his team” with securing a landmark teacher’s contract and ushering in a new school reform campaign.
“By far, most of our work remains in front of us … but we’ve come an extraordinary distance” in the last year, the mayor said. DeStefano predicted that the next three years would be “truly incredible years for our kids.”
School reform czar Garth Harries was the only person to speak during a public comment session.
Harries called Mayo “an inspiration to all of us and a fabulous leader.”
“Dr. Mayo, nothing could make me happier, nothing could make the rest of the district happier, than to have you as our leader,” Harries said.
Melissa Bailey Photo
Mayo (pictured) said he remains committed to the goals of school reform: cutting the high school dropout rate in half, closing the achievement gap in five years, and ensuring each kid has the opportunity to go to college.
“There’s still a lot of work to do,” he said. “I will certainly try to use all the skills and tools that I have to make sure those outcomes become real.”