West Central Middle/High School’s principal is stepping down. Scott Ritchie’s resignation was accepted by the school board Thursday.
Superintendent Dan Zylstra says Ritchie is leaving for a job with Madison-Grant Schools. “[That’s] a lot closer to his home base, and he’s been working here for two-and-a-half years living two-and-a-half hours away and he’s rented a place here,” Zylstra says. “So we understand him wanting to be closer to home, but we will miss him because he has been a great principal year for the past two-and-a-half years.”
At the same time, the school board’s looking at keeping Zylstra as superintendent for another three years. He says no comments were offered during a public hearing Thursday on his proposed contract. If approved, it would raise his annual salary to $98,000 plus benefits for the coming school year, plus a $2,000 increase for each of the two years after that. The superintendent’s contract will be up for final approval during a special school board meeting next Thursday.
This comes as school officials continue looking at a potential reduction in force to match declining enrollment. But Zylstra is more confident they’ll be able to make the necessary reductions through attrition, after some staff members have left for jobs at other schools.
