Fort Smith superintendent receives contract extension

FORT SMITH — The School District’s superintendent received a contract extension Monday along with a pay increase.

The School Board voted 7-0 to add a year to Superintendent Terry Morawski’s contract after its annual superintendent evaluation in an executive session that lasted more than t h ree hours Monday.

Morawski’s new contract runs through June 30, 2024. It includes an annual salary of $215,292 in addition to an increase equal to “the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers for the South as calculated by the U.S. Department of Labor for the May 2021 published twelvemonth period.”

The board approved Morawski’s original superintendent contract Nov. 30. It ran from Dec. 31 through June 30, 2023, and gave Morawski a base salary of $215,000 per year.

Zena Featherston Marshall, executive director of communication and community partnerships for the district, said Morawski’s new contract calls for 240 working days out of each contract year, 10 fewer than his prior contract contained. This change is in line with contracts in other school districts in the area.

The board chose Morawski as superintendent last year to replace Doug Brubaker, who left for the superintendent’s position in Texarkana, Texas. Morawski had been deputy superintendent since July 2018.

School Board President Susan McFerran on Monday told Morawski the board is “very pleased” to have him for another three years.

About 13,800 students were enrolled in the district this past school year.

Morawski