Wayne BOE Names New Superintendent
The interim superintendent in Hackensack was approved by the nine-member board.
The Board of Education unanimously approved Dr. Raymond Gonzalez as the district's new superintendent Thursday night, after a three-year search.
Gonzalez, the interim superintendent in Hackensack since July, officially starts as Wayne's top administrator in December. He will make an annual salary of $177,500.
Gonzalez said he eagerly accepted the position as superintendent in Wayne "mainly because of those nine people up there," pointing to the members of the school board.
"You need to have a board that is in alignment in order to make things work," Gonzalez said, adding that his first goal is one that was addressed at the board meeting: changing the district's outdated website.
Gonzalez joked that the biggest challenge in the district's immediate future was that he remain in the position, referencing the recent problems the board has had with finding a permanent superintendent replacement.
"One of the biggest challenges will be to remain consistent in striving for educational excellence," he said, adding that he has serious goals of "moving the ship forward."
John Sico Jr. was the distirct's last permanent superintendent. He retired in 2009 after serving just nine months of his 3 1/2-year contract. His annual salary was $190,000 a year.
The search process was made more difficult since Governor Chris Christie instituted a $175,000 cap on superintendents’ salaries earlier in the year. Gonzalez's salary is the highest allowed under the cap.
The board hired West Hudson Associates earlier this year to assist in the hiring process. West Hudson’s director William Libera has been recruiting and interviewing candidates before the board interviews them. West Hudson is receiving $12,000 for its services.
Michael Roth has been the district’s interim superintendent since December 2010.
Board members said they were thrilled to have Gonzalez on board.
"He will be a great educational leader, bringing stability and intelligence to the school system," board member Laura Stiziano said.
Pad
5:39 pm on Friday, October 7, 2011
Again, If Sico retired then why is he working right down the hill from Wayne as a Superintendant? Why do you keep lying about this? What are you hiding? In referance to Mr. Gonzalez I hear he is a fantastic administrator and leader, I wish him luck. The question now is " How long he will last in Wayne with this BOE and all the BS that goes on in the district? I don't think he will tolerate much and he won't be the BOE's puppet. So time will tell if he stay's or packs his bags.
georgeg
5:41 pm on Friday, October 7, 2011
Puppet: Gonzalez said he eagerly accepted the position as superintendent in Wayne "mainly because of those nine people up there," pointing to the members of the school board. ......
Al Scala
8:04 am on Saturday, October 8, 2011
I wish Dr. Gonzalez luck. It should be interesting how he deals with Bob Ceberio and Robin Kingston, two people who have a penchant to control everything! My concern is that Dr. Gonzalez has moved around a lot. He is a Princeton graduate which is impressive . Let's give him time and see what he does. Now, the real plan is to appoint Pandolfi the Assistant Super, which our District has done without for the past 4-5 years, so why do we need her now, Good luck Dr. Gonzalez. I wish you well.
SuezandJoe
4:13 pm on Saturday, October 8, 2011
Finally, a board that does what it says it will do! Why would people bash this wonderful news? Give the guy a chance. As a community, we should support this new superintendent and wish him well. This is a new board and so far they seem to work together well and they certainly filled the Superintendent position quickly. We need positive people helping this town, not naysayers. Much success Dr. Gonzalez.
Pad
5:06 pm on Monday, October 10, 2011
They filled the position quickly? This position has been vacant a long time. All these board members didn't come on the BOE yesterday. The last two Super's now gone also said they looked foward to working with the BOE. They were forced out. Time will tell how long Mr. Gonzalez stays. He's very bright but so were the others and they had much more experiance and they couldn't hack it and were forced out. Suze, Joe, and georgeg you can't be that blind to see what happen to the last two. If this BOE is so great why do they keep perpetuating the lie that Sico retired? He's working right in a neighboring town as a Super. Everyone knows the BOE forced him out and he left with alot of taxpayers money.