Divided board gives Rockford schools leader two more years. Here are the details

Rockford School Board members are giving Superintendent Ehren Jarrett until 2026 to meet goals for student achievement and graduation or he is out.

Saying he "loves being part of Rockford," Jarrett said he was happy to be granted a two-year contract extension Tuesday.

But approval came only after an effort by three board members to put him on a one-year deal failed.

"I had asked for the board to make a multi-year commitment to me and a majority of the board supported that," Jarrett said during a phone interview. "I think three of the board members preferred to extend for one year and kind of do it one year at a time, but I was happy that there was consensus to retain me."

The 4-3 vote fell along racial lines with the Rockford School Board's Black members — Kimberly Haley, Tiana McCall and Board President Denise Pearson — favoring a one-year deal. Board members June Stanford, Grant Schubert, Nicole Bennett and Paul Carpenter supported giving Jarrett a two-year extension.

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Pearson declined to comment on the contract. Haley and McCall did not immediately respond to phone and email messages seeking comment.

Jarrett is in his 11th year at the helm of the region's largest school system. He was given a three-year performance-based contract in 2021 that included options for two one-year extensions.

If the school board had taken no action, Jarrett's contract would have automatically been extended in two one-year increments. But the extension for two years came at Jarrett's request.

Work to do

Jarrett has until the end of the contract in 2026 to meet goals that hold him accountable for the performance of the school system. His original contract had called for him to meet those goals by the end of this school year. Most of that measurement data will not be available until October 2024. The extension gives him until 2026.

Jarrett said the district is moving toward the goals.

Last school year's graduation rate was 69%, up about 5 percentage points from what it was in 2021. But there is a ways to go to achieve the school board's goal of a 75% graduation rate by 2026. State average last year was 89%.

The school district as a whole has already achieved its goal of having 75% of freshman on track to graduate, up from 67.6% in 2021. But just 66% of Black students are doing as well in Rockford schools. State average freshman on-track rate was 87% last year and 79% among Black students across the state.

Jarrett said 78% of middle school students are considered "on track," as the system works to improve by 5% since 2021 to 80% of middle school students on track. The district is also working to improve third-grade reading which is said to be a key a measurement as students at that age shift from "learning to read" to "reading to learn."

Carpenter said in a phone interview that he supported the two-year extension because it offered stability for the district and because he has seen the district making steady progress towards the performance-based goals.

"They're not gimmes," Carpenter said. "They're challenging goals that were agreed to by the previous board and the superintendent. Progress is being made towards them and, if at the end of five years the goals are not met, then the superintendent’s contract can't be renewed."

Financial deal

Although no financial terms were specified as part of the extension, the contract includes an annual increase that is equal to the average percentage increase given to district non-union employees — or another percentage as set by the school board before March 31.

Jarrett's base salary this school year is $242,261, a 4.3% increase since his 2021 contract was inked which had given him a base salary of $232,205.

Jarrett said the extension gives him a little more than two years to significantly improve district performance.

"I look at it as I have a 31-month opportunity to continue to try to hit our contract goals," Jarrett said.

Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached at  (815) 987-1374, via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on Twitter @jeffkolkey.

This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford School Board gives superintendent another 31 months