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<p>&nbsp;<strong>By Mike McCombs&nbsp;</strong></p>
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<p>At its regular meeting Tuesday night, Nov. 16, the Beaufort County Board of Education gave Beaufort County School District Superintendent Frank Rodriguez a 10 percent raise and a four-year contract extension.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>Rodriguez’s pay will increase from just more than $210,000 to just more than $231,000. Originally set to expire June 30, 2023, his contract will now run through 2027.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>Immediately after the board came out of executive session to open the public portion of the meeting, board member David Striebinger moved that the board amend the employment agreement with Rodriguez, making four changes – increasing the length of the contract by four years, increasing the salary by 10 percent, increasing the annual annuity contribution by 5 percent and increasing Rodriguez’s travel budget to $1,200 – as well as allowing the chairperson to execute an amendment to the agreement to reflect these changes.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>The motion passed 10-1, with board member William Smith the lone opposition.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>“At this time, I can not support this,” Smith said.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>The extension and raise come just a few weeks after the board’s review of Rodriguez, in which he earned a total composite score of 3.72, which falls in the “highly effective overall” range. His composite score increased from 3.31 last year.</p>
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<p>(See The Island News’ coverage at <a href="https://bit.ly/3nGDZZ">https://bit.ly/3nGDZZ</a>i.)</p>
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<p>“The Board of Education congratulates Dr. Frank Rodriguez on his highly effective performance rating leading the Beaufort County School District in the 2020-2021 school year despite the unprecedented challenge of having to accommodate for the effect of the coronavirus pandemic in nearly every aspect of running the District,” Board Chair Dr. Christina Gwozdz wrote in her summary of the Board’s evaluation. “Instruction to students was delivered simultaneously in multiple modalities – virtual, in-person and hybrid learning environments – which had never been previously necessary. Hard work, effective leadership, flexibility and innovation by our Superintendent guided the District through this enormous challenge.</p>
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<p>“In addition, Dr. Rodriguez is successfully overseeing the construction projects of the $344 million referendum passed in 2019. The Board sincerely thanks Dr. Rodriguez for his many efforts and for his dedication and commitment to the District.”</p>
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<p><em>Mike McCombs is the Editor of The Island News and can be reached at TheIslandNews@gmail.com.</em></p>
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