School Board

October 28th, 2024

The Wallingford-Swarthmore School District Board of School Directors and the Wallingford-Swarthmore Education Association have agreed to a new four-year contract, retroactive to July 1, 2024, and running through June 30, 2028.

“We are extremely pleased to announce this contract agreement with the district’s teachers,” said School Board President Kevin Henry. “We value our teaching staff, and believe that this contract provides a competitive salary structure that will help the district to retain and attract highly qualified educators who are passionate about our students and school community.”

The contract agreement is the culmination of months of negotiations between the School Board and Education Association. It includes increases in salaries and updates in professional development time to help ensure the district’s teachers have access to quality training and collaboration.

Over the duration of the contract, average annual salary increases will be 3.91 percent. In the first year of the contract, starting salaries for new teachers will increase from $54,000 to $61,000; by year four they will be set at $67,650. Salaries for teachers at the top of the salary schedule, holding the most years of experience and with a doctorate degree, will increase in year one of the contract from $109,500 to $114,000; by year four they will be set at $120,650.

The new contract includes no changes in medical insurance with the exception of slight modifications in prescription coverage contribution by teachers.

The Board and Association have agreed to form a joint Labor Management Committee to continue to clarify contract language on a few remaining items, including guidelines for elementary class size and the teacher preparation time at the high school level. Once resolved by the Committee, the remaining clarified sections of the contract will be incorporated into the collective bargaining agreement.

“WSEA is glad to have ratified a collective bargaining agreement that will take our members into 2028. Our representatives on the upcoming Labor Management Committee will work diligently in the next few months so that a resolution can be reached on the remaining issues,” said Association President, Billie Jo McNamara.  “We are of the belief that the district shares our focus and commitment to this process and that it will reach a conclusion in the coming months.  All WSEA members are looking forward to being able to focus solely on our most important priority which is providing the students at the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District with a high-quality education.” 

Negotiations began in January 2024. Teachers ratified the contract agreement on Monday, October 21 and the School Board publicly approved it on Monday, October 28.

October 1st, 2024

The negotiating committees for the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board of Directors and the Wallingford-Swarthmore Education Association, the district’s teachers and professional staff union, are pleased to announce they have reached a tentative agreement on a new, four-year labor contract.  The agreement also includes the formation of a special labor management committee that will finish working on some areas of the contract that require additional time to bargain. Both sides agreed to do this, so other provisions of the contract can be implemented.

“We are extremely pleased that after months of careful discussion and collaboration, we have reached a tentative contract agreement,” said School Board President Kevin Henry. “We are very much looking forward to continuing to work with WSEA on our shared goals and appreciate the patience and diligence of everyone who has been involved in this process.”

Billie Jo McNamara, President of WSEA shared, “First we want to thank our community, and our fellow ESP union members for the tremendous support you have shown us over the last few months.  Words cannot express our appreciation.  WSEA is excited to have reached a tentative agreement and be able to return our focus to providing students with the best possible educational experience.”

Both the Association’s membership and the full School Board will review the details of the contract, a process that includes a minimum of 10 days under the ratification guidelines of WSEA. The Association’s membership must then vote on whether to approve the contract, and if approved, the School Board will schedule a special meeting to cast its vote on approval of the contract, as well. Details of the contract will be released after the Association approves the agreement.

Dear Wallingford Swarthmore School Community,

We are writing to share with you significant plans for anticipated change in our school district’s leadership. After thoughtful discussion, the School Board and Superintendent, Dr. Wagner Marseille, have mutually agreed to pursue an amicable conclusion to Dr. Marseille’s service as District Superintendent, which will be fully conditioned upon the execution of a mutually agreed upon separation agreement by Dr. Marseille and the School Board. Dr. Marseille has dedicated a significant amount of time, energy, and expertise to our school district over the last three years. As a Board we value his passion and wish him all the best in his future work.

In anticipation of the need to fill the role of superintendent, and with a new school year about to begin, it will be important to quickly appoint an interim superintendent while the Board begins to discuss the process of searching for its next superintendent.

We are pleased to share that we anticipate appointing Dr. Jim Scanlon, an experienced and well regarded former superintendent, as interim superintendent. Dr. Scanlon brings 22 years’ experience as a superintendent to our district. He is known for being a collaborative and communicative leader, and we are very optimistic that he will provide steady leadership during this time of transition. Dr. Scanlon retired in 2021 after 12 years as superintendent in the West Chester Area School District. He most recently served as Interim Superintendent in the Central Bucks School District for several months this past spring. It is common for retired superintendents to provide interim leadership, for limited periods of time, for school districts during search processes and transitions.

At a special school board meeting next Thursday, August 22 at 7 p.m., we anticipate approving and fully executing a separation agreement for Dr. Marseille. Following approval of that agreement, we also anticipate appointing Dr. Scanlon to an interim term effective August 23, not to exceed one year, during our search process.

As a Board, we are fully committed to a search process that includes a significant amount of feedback and contribution from our staff, students, parents, and school community. We are looking forward to establishing new opportunities to strengthen communication and ensure we are working as collaboratively and responsively as possible on all of our district’s goals.

Any leadership change presents challenges and questions, and we appreciate your patience while we, too, work through these changes. We will do so as transparently and respectfully as possible, while also focusing on the energy and excitement of the new school year that is upon us.

You can expect to hear additional communication from the district as we move forward through this process. As always, thank you for your support of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School District.

Sincerely,
Kevin Henry, School Board President
Kelly Wachtman, School Board Vice President
On Behalf of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board

Monday, August 12, 2024

Dear Wallingford Swarthmore School Community,The start of the new school year is just two weeks away, and we hope you have been enjoying a restful and enjoyable summer. As School Board members, we felt it was important to communicate with you directly, after numerous concerns were voiced at our July 22 School Board meeting regarding the leadership direction of the district.

Above all, we are committed to continuing to listen and understand, and to directly addressing those concerns with a holistic plan focused on reconsidering and recalibrating the pace of change, and fostering a climate and culture that elevates staff, student, and parent voice. We are also committed to creating a plan that is responsive and reflective. Organizational change often includes some level of challenge, frustration, or resistance, but it is clear that our current path is not serving our school district well or creating the kind of fully supportive environment that we need to thrive. It is time to reset.

As residents elected to work collaboratively with our school district’s administration to lead and direct – rather than explicitly manage – we are cognizant of both our responsibilities and our role as a board. We have heard the call for change, recognize, and affirm it. We must also be diligent in ensuring we follow district processes and procedures and move forward in a timely but thoughtful manner. Otherwise, we run the risk of responding with the same kind of intense forward rush that has been counterproductive.

Over the last few years, many of the professional audits and assessments completed for the district by highly regarded national organizations demonstrated areas for growth, particularly in the ways in which we support the academic success of all students. This remains an important focus and priority. However, any plans for improvement – in any area - must be implemented in a manner that more fully involves our staff and reflects and respects their valuable perspectives. Continual improvement is a hallmark of any strong school system. It’s effective only when it is inclusive, collaborative, and supportive.

The Wallingford-Swarthmore School District is one of the highest-achieving school districts in the state, and we are fortunate to have an incredibly dedicated faculty and staff who care deeply for our students. As you likely know, we are negotiating a new contract with our teachers’ association and that issue has gathered some attention in the media. As a Board, we are committed to working collaboratively towards a contract settlement. The concerns about management and the aggressive pace of change have added a layer of complexity to those negotiations, but they have not deterred us from our goal of achieving a fair and supportive contract that continues to value our excellent teaching staff.

We are very sorry that our school community is experiencing turmoil and concern. We expect that media coverage over the next few weeks may add to a broader sense of frustration and confusion. As a Board, we want to be clear that we are committed to adjusting course. We will communicate directly again in the coming weeks with more specifics.

As we prepare to open a new school year, we know that no matter what, each of our faculty and staff will warmly and eagerly greet the students who enter their schools and classrooms in two weeks, determined as they always are to make the school year a phenomenal one. Thank you to each of them, and to you, for your commitment to our students, and for your grace and patience as we do our work as a Board in responding to what we have heard.

Sincerely,
Kevin Henry, School Board President
Kelly Wachtman, School Board Vice President
On behalf of the Wallingford-Swarthmore School Board

Superintendent Search Update

January 27, 2025

I would like to begin by thanking the board for their diligence in this extraordinary process.  This board has worked tirelessly to fully assess each candidate and to personally meet each of the 4 semi-finalists.

In addition to the usual background checks and resume reviews, board members wrote high quality interview questions that reflected us as a community. We watched recorded interviews from each of the candidates, innumerable school board meetings and recorded candidate presentations.  We listened to and reviewed our stakeholder’s input to understand and to impart the importance of community/teacher/staff and student relations.  We understand that communication style is important to our entire community. We looked for candidates who always put children first.

As part of our process, Districts were evaluated for performance on student measures of success, for their equity practices, their system of student interventions and mental health practices.

Candidates were required to discuss their views on curriculum, instruction and the most effective and innovative practices that allow all students to achieve their fullest potential.

Candidates were evaluated on their expertise in negotiations and finalizing contracts.

Candidates shared their facilities plans, and good stewardship of budgets, Their uses of resources and human capital were evaluated.

Each candidate was required to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of our strategic plan, our community, our strengths and our challenges.  Our our finalists will be required to present a plan to address one of our five pathways.

At this time, we have decided on two finalists.  The two finalists are both award winning and accomplished leaders of their communities.  Our responsibility now will be to decide which candidate is the best fit for us. 

We are on track to select the best candidate for our district by the end of February.  By keeping to our intended timeline, we are allowing for a smooth transition between our district and the new superintendent. It takes time for a new superintendent to finalize their contract with us and to alert their current employer.  It may take several months before he or she is able join us. 

Our intention is to have a candidate join us this spring. If we accomplish this, the new superintendent will be able to learn about our school community when we are fully running. More importantly, he or she will have the opportunity to thoroughly participate in the planning of the 2025-2026 school year.  When our students and faculty return in September, we will ready.  For these reasons the board has worked tirelessly to maintain our ambitious schedule. 

We look forward to introducing a new superintendent to our community this spring.

Regards,

Mary Jo Witkowski-Smith

On Behalf of the WSSD Board of Directors