New Kensington-Arnold approves 3.5% pay increase for superintendent
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The outgoing New Kensington-Arnold School Board approved a raise for the district’s superintendent over the objection of one of three new members set to join the board in December.
The board voted unanimously in favor of a 3.5% pay increase for Superintendent Chris Sefcheck. It is retroactive to July 1, and runs through June 30, 2024.
It increases his annual salary by close to $4,900, from $138,375 to a little over $143,000, according to figures provided by the district.
After he was hired in April 2021, Sefcheck started on July 1, 2021, at $135,000. The board approved his first pay increase, 2.5%, in October 2022.
Sefcheck’s five-year contract runs until June 30, 2026.
As the board voted for Sefcheck’s second raise, board member Nicholas DiCarolis credited him with setting the district on the right track.
The motion to increase Sefcheck’s pay was added to the meeting agenda.
Rob Fusia, a former board member who was uncontested for a seat in the district’s Region 2, said he found it odd that the outgoing board would give the superintendent a pay increase in a “lame-duck session.”
Fusia will join the board when it reorganizes Dec. 4, along with former board member Bob Pallone in Region 1 and Eric Felack in Region 3. They will replace outgoing members Steven Sorch, Eric Doutt and Scott Bussard, respectively.
Reelected to the board were Terry Schrock in Region 1, Timothy Beckes in Region 2 and John Cope in Region 3. All were elected to four-year terms except for Felack, who won a two-year seat.
While Fusia argued a decision on Sefcheck’s pay should be left to the new board, Beckes said the raise was based on the review of his performance in the 2022-23 school year, so it would be unfair for those who were not on the board during that time to make that decision.
Sefcheck said he understood Fusia’s concern but his salary needed to be considered by the board that evaluated him.
“It wouldn’t be fair asking new board members with no knowledge of my performance to vote on a raise that was due before they were elected,” he said.
Sefcheck said he is thankful to work alongside a supportive board and faculty “that have truly made a difference.”
“I am extremely pleased with the work our faculty and students have done raising the bar academically,” he said. “It is nice to see that the board recognizes the direction we are moving and to take action.”