Madison District to post director role after longtime staffer signals retirement

The Madison District Public Schools board agreed to post a director-level position to take on human-resources, pupil-accounting and student-behavior responsibilities after longtime staff member Pam announced her retirement.

Superintendent Perry told the board she had spoken with President Harp and recommended posting a position "over mySTAR, pupil accounting, and student behavior" rather than hiring another assistant superintendent, citing the district's limited funding. Perry said she "would love to have another Pam," but acknowledged financial realities and said she could absorb additional duties temporarily if the board chose a director-level role.

Trustees debated trade-offs between cost and operational capacity. One trustee said the director approach could save money for a smaller district, while others raised concerns about certification for leading expulsion hearings; Perry noted an administrative certificate "looks better" for running those proceedings but said principals sometimes could lead initial steps.

The board asked administrators to post the director position as soon as possible, interview candidates quickly and try to have a hire ready for the August board meeting, with an ideal start date around Aug. 15 to allow overlap with the retiring employee. Perry said she would circulate the contract once a selection is made and include it in her Friday newsletter.

The decision was framed as a pragmatic step to balance continuity for students and fiscal constraints; trustees also agreed to collect "lessons learned" on the superintendent-evaluation process and form a small subcommittee to consider whether the district should return to a numeric evaluation tool or adopt another framework.