Ankeny Superintendent Matthew Wendt Hired at Illinois School District

Just 24 hours after submitting his resignation to the Ankeny school district, Superintendent Matthew Wendt has been hired to lead Oswego School District in Illinois.

, the District 308 Board of Education approved a three-year contract with Wendt Thursday night to take over for the district's current superintendent, who resigned in February.

Wendt's first day at Oswego will be July 1.

The Ankeny school board approved Wendt’s resignation 5-2 at a special meeting Wednesday night. The board offered Wendt a three-year contract including a 3.25 percent pay raise if he remained. It also included an option for Wendt to receive a transition allowance if he elected to resign. The allowance is the equivalent of one year's salary without benefits, which replaced a four-year severance payout previously in the superintendent’s contract.

Wendt's current annual salary is $176,513.

Wendt’s contract with Oswego guarantees him a base salary of $225,000 a year, plus benefits, and the district's board has the option to increase that figure for the contract’s last two years.

Oswego Board President Bill Walsh said the similarities between the Ankeny and Oswego school districts played into the board’s decision. Ankeny, he said, is facing many of the same issues, from boundary questions to managing growth to improving academic performance.

All six of the Oswego board members present at Thursday’s meeting voted to approve Wendt’s contract.

Oswego board member Alison Swanson voted to hire Wendt, but expressed reservations about the salary. 

“I am increasingly concerned about the money train we seem to be on,” she said. “Going forward, we have to reel that back in, or I will not support further candidates.”

Swanson said she voted yes because she believes Wendt will be a good fit for the district, and it’s important that he have the board’s full support. But she said it is difficult for her to justify an expense that could have gone back into the classroom.

Walsh told Oswego Patch after the meeting that the salary represents an investment in Wendt, and the board expects to see results. The negotiated salary is an amount the board felt comfortable paying, considering the qualities they need in a leader moving forward, he said.

“It’s crucial to have someone of his caliber to lead the district,” Walsh said.

You may be interested in: