It’s official: Geneva D-304 board approves contract for new superintendent

GENEVA – Geneva School District 304 unanimously voted Monday night to approve a contract with its new superintendent Andrew Barrett, who currently is the district’s assistant superintendent for learning and teaching.

The board had announced its choice of Barrett on Jan. 25, but officials said the appointment would not be official until after negotiating a contract with him.

Barrett is to take the reins of the district July 1, the day after Superintendent Kent Mutchler retires on June 30.

Board President Michael McCormick said it’s been a long process, but he and the board were happy to arrive at a contract.

“I think, in the end, we got the right candidate,” McCormick said. “And I appreciate my fellow board members doing everything they did to get this done. And appreciate Dr. Barrett. … I’m getting off the board and I wish him the best. I know he’s going to have a great great future here.”

“We are delighted to have Andy as the new superintendent and we look forward to many years of a happy and successful relationship,” board member Larry Cabeen said.

Barrett’s nine-page contract was released Tuesday after a Freedom of Information Act request.

The contract is for three years, from July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2026. Barrett will be paid $210,000 per year, with the board having discretion to increase it after an annual performance review by March 1 every year, according to the contract.

The district will contribute to Barrett’s Teachers’ Retirement System and pay 100% of his and his family’s medical and dental insurance, as well as a term life policy for $200,000, according to the contract.

The contract also grants him 25 paid vacation days a year, outside of the legal and school holidays, and up to 16 days of sick leave.

Barrett has been with the district since 2006, when he was hired as principal at Mill Creek Elementary School.

Barrett became director of learning and teaching in 2011 and assistant superintendent in 2014.

Barrett, who lives in Batavia, has a doctoral degree in educational policy, organization and leadership from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

The district had a nationwide search for the new superintendent that ended with two finalists participating in a public forum Jan. 24.