The Pleasant Valley School Board will be voting on the superintendent’s new five-year contract during its meeting on Thursday night.

The contract agreement with Superintendent James Konrad, Ed.D., would be in effect from July 1 to June 30, 2031, and provides an initial salary of $218,000. From there, Konrad would receive an annual base salary increase of 3%, as long as his performance evaluation by the school board is deemed as at least proficient/satisfactory, according to the contract.

According to the contract, if the school board’s evaluation is determined to be distinguished, then his base salary increase would be 4%. If his performance evaluation comes back as needs improvement or unsatisfactory/failing, then his salary is frozen at that year’s level. The school board would then be required to review his performance again at midyear to determine if his performance has increased and a salary increase is warranted.

The contract also states that the school board has the right to increase Konrad’s salary “at its sole discretion, over and above the increases noted under this section.” These increases could consist of a bonus or additional money added to his base salary.

In addition to that compensation, Konrad would be given two longevity bonuses of $2,000 each paid directly to his 403(b) retirement plan. The first longevity bonus would be awarded if he remains employed as the superintendent as of Jan. 1, 2028. The second bonus would be awarded if his employment continues at least to Jan. 1, 2030.

The contract states that the reason for this agreement is to “enhance administrative stability and continuity within the district, which the board believes generally improves the quality of its overall educational program.”

Konrad joined the school district in December 2021 with a five-year contract and a starting salary of $170,000. Since then, his salary has increased.

The school board approved in a 7-2 vote on Aug. 14 to give Konrad a 3.5% raise, which brought his salary to $196,021 and was retroactive to July 1, 2025. Directors John Gesiskie and Ryan O’Keefe voted no.

At that time, Gesiskie said he was voting no because he felt the district had room for improvement.

Evaluation tests such as the Keystone exams for 11th-grade students, and the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment exams for grades 3 to 8 in English language arts and mathematics and grades 5 to 8 for science have shown some results below state proficiency levels.

The contract states that Konrad’s performance evaluations will be done annually on or before June 30 in an executive session of the board, unless both the board and Konrad agree on a different date for the evaluation meeting. The board will provide a written annual evaluation to him.

The evaluation will be based on the following:

• Student achievement on the Pennsylvania System of School Assessment tests.

• Student achievement on the Keystone exams or other measures as determined by the Pennsylvania Department of Education.

• Student growth measured by the Pennsylvania Value-Added Assessment System.

• Student attrition, which is the rate of student dropout, withdrawal, or failure to complete their studies.

• Graduation rates.

• Financial management of the District.

• Overall job performance.

• Successfully completing his goals that were jointly established between him and the school board.

• And any other criteria that is agreed upon by the school district and Konrad.

The contract also states that the performance of mutually agreed-upon objectives will be made public on the district’s website each year.

As for benefits, Konrad is eligible for all fringe benefits available to administrators. If he waives the health care benefits for himself, his spouse and dependents, then he will receive a monthly payment of $500 directly paid to his 403(b) retirement plan.

The proposed contract for Konrad is available for public review on the school district’s website. It is attached to the agenda for Thursday night’s meeting at 7 p.m.