Quincy School Board extends superintendent contract

QUINCY — The contract of Quincy School District Superintendent Nik Bergman has been extended through 2026.

Quincy School Board members approved a new contract for Bergman with no discussion, as part of the consent agenda, at the regular meeting Tuesday.

“The school district hereby employs Nik Bergman as the superintendent of schools commencing on July 1, 2023 and ending on June 30, 2026,” according to the contract.

The extension added a year to the end of the contract, which had been scheduled to expire in June 2025. Bergman will be paid $197,000 for 2023-24, which is what he got for 2022-23.

Under the terms of the contract, Bergman must be notified by Feb. 1 if board members decide not to renew. The contract renews automatically if board members don’t give notice they’re not going to renew, and in February 2023, they didn’t give that notice.

Bergman was granted up to 30 vacation days, 15 of which can be carried to the next year. In addition, Bergman can receive reimbursement for up to 15 unused vacation days. He also gets the medical insurance benefits commensurate with those paid to other certificated administrators, the contract said.

The contract is for 260 working days, minus vacation and holidays.

In other business, board members heard the results of a survey of students and families, and discussed the possibility of using a new survey next school year.

The “Youth Truth” survey is given every year to students in all Quincy schools, and to parents who want to take it. Respondents are asked to identify things they think the district is doing well, and thing’s it’s not doing so well.

Secondary students said they thought Quincy was doing a good job of preparing them for post-secondary education and training, and provided assistance in helping them figure out careers that would interest them. Secondary students thought district discipline was fair and staff and students treated each other with respect.

However, they also thought the district needed work on making classes challenging and relevant, which prompted a question from board member Chad Lower.

“How do we define relevance?” he asked.

Colleen Frerks, director of the district’s Whole Child program, read a couple of the questions, which asked students if their classes made them think and if they had to work hard. Board member Tricia Lubach said those questions didn’t really seem to fit the topic.

Frerks said it’s a long survey, and that students - and parents - may not be paying attention by the time they get to the end. The number of students and parents willing to participate in the survey has decreased over time, she said, and its length is cited as one reason why. District officials are looking at other, and shorter, survey options, she said.

Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at [email protected].

By the numbers:

Term: 7/1/23 – 6/30/26

Salary: $197,000

Vacation days: 30

Working days: 260