After more than a month of controversy and the resignation of board member Jim Haslip, the St. Helena Unified School District board of trustees agreed last week to hire Assistant Superintendent Robert Haley as the district’s new superintendent.

Following more than two and a half hours of closed-session discussion, the board voted 4-0 to approve a two-year contract with Haley. He will earn $189,000 a year plus benefits, receive $10,000 a year for expenses and a $500-per-month automobile allowance. If Haley is fired, a termination clause limits any cash settlement to 18 months pay or the salary remaining

on his contract, whichever is less.

Trustee Carolyn Martini said one member of the board insisted that the contract be for no more than two years, but the other three trustees were ready to give Haley three years. Martini said Haley “was kind enough to acquiesce on that point so we could get an agreement with the whole board.” The contract states that an additional year will be tacked onto Haley’s contract every year, provided his performance evaluations are positive.

The hiring capped off a month-long controversy over how the board should handle the vacancy.

Parents argued the board should hire Haley on a temporary basis while conducting a longer search for the person who will replace Allan Gordon, who is stepping down at the end of the academic year. Haslip, who at first favored hiring Haley and later backed a more deliberative hiring process, resigned when it appeared the rest of the board wanted to go forward with Haley.

Trustees said the contract had been the subject of much discussion during the lengthy closed session before Deluna and Martini negotiated the contract with Haley.

“We have had a lot of discussion,” said Trustee Cindy Warren. “It hasn’t been unanimous discussion. We haven’t all agreed on a lot of things. We’ve gone back and forth getting different people’s perspectives. It’s not that we haven’t listened, because for the past month I think it’s all we’ve done.”

Trustee Cynthia Lane agreed that “this was nothing that was entered into lightly. A lot of time and thought has been put into this. … I also have spent time at home in tears and sleepless nights. It’s been an incredibly hard thing to go through.”

Deluna said she hadn’t anticipated the controversy over the appointment. “Maybe we would have taken different steps, not in our decision maybe, but in the way it occurred,” she said.

Six members of the public addressed the board about the superintendent situation before trustees entered closed session.

Maria Stel, a Robert Louis Stevenson Middle School parent, urged the board to hire Haley on a one-year basis and conduct an open search.

“Some of you may think that some of you who oppose your April 9 decision are a disgruntled few,” she said. “I assure you we are not just a disgruntled few, but a concerned many. For everyone who has stood up and spoken publicly against your decision, there are many, many more who are too timid or too afraid to do so themselves.”

After the board approve his contract, Haley praised teachers, staffers, students and parents. He also had kind words for the school board.

“You always take it back to ‘What’s going to benefit the students? How’s it going to help teachers teach students?’” he said. “I’m glad to hear that I have your full support, and I want you to know that you have my full support. I look forward to being here until I finish my career.”

“We’ve all heard a lot over the course of the last month or two with regards to process, and maybe things could have been done better,” he added.

Haley also discussed his tenure as superintendent in Sebastopol, which ended shortly after a “no confidence” vote by teachers.

“It was a district facing many challenges,” said Haley. “I guided it through a very difficult period of time, and sometimes when one does that they have to turn things over to somebody else. After much soul-searching with that board, I let them know that I wanted to take on a new challenge here in St. Helena.”

Deluna said the board will schedule a special meeting to discuss how to fill the trustee seat left vacant by Haslip’s resignation.

The board has until July 11 to decide whether to appoint a new trustee or call a special election.the public on Friday.

The contract still hadn’t been released as of Tuesday, so the Star filed a formal request to view it under the state’s Public Records Act. The district released the contract on Wednesday.

The hiring capped off a month-long controversy over how the board should handle the vacancy. Parents argued the board should hire Haley on a temporary basis while conducting an open search.

Trustees said the contract had been the subject of much discussion by the board during the lengthy closed session before Deluna and Martini negotiated the contract with Haley.

“We have had a lot of discussion,” said Trustee Cindy Warren. “It hasn’t been unanimous discussion. We haven’t all agreed on a lot of things. We’ve gone back and forth getting different people’s perspectives. It’s not that we haven’t listened because for the past month I think it’s all we’ve done.”

Trustee Cynthia Lane agreed that “this was nothing that was entered into lightly. A lot of time and thought has been put into this. … I also have spent time at home in tears and sleepless nights. It’s been an incredibly hard thing to go through.”

Deluna said she hadn’t anticipated the controversy over the appointment. “Maybe we would have taken different steps, not in our decision maybe, but in the way it occurred,” she said.

Six members of the public addressed the board about the superintendent situation before trustees entered closed session.

Maria Stel, an RLS parent, urged the board to hire Haley on a one-year basis and conduct an open search.

“Some of you may think that some of you who oppose your April 9 decision are a disgruntled few,” she said. “I assure you we are not just a disgruntled few, but a concerned many. For everyone who has stood up and spoken publicly against your decision, there are many, many more who are too timid or too afraid to do so themselves.”

Trustee Jim Haslip, who resigned on May 11, initially defended the board’s original decision not to conduct an open search and to invite Haley to apply for the job. But he said he changed his mind after a barrage of e-mails from parents and a special board meeting on May 6 where 110 people showed up to speak on both sides of the issue.

Last week Haslip told the Star he asked to have an open search put on the May 14 agenda, but was rebuffed by Deluna. During the board meeting Deluna denied his allegation and said she took personal offense.

“His request to put something on the agenda was never denied,” she said.

Warren said that before the board made its initial decision a month ago, they had discussed the pros and cons of conducting an outside search.

“Jim Haslip was really the person who certainly convinced me about staying inside,” she said.

Deluna said the board will schedule a special meeting to discuss how to fill the vacant seat. The board has until July 11 to decide whether to appoint a new trustee or call a special election.

After the board approved his contract, Haley praised teachers, staffers, students and parents. He also had kind words for the school board.

“You always take it back to ‘What’s going to benefit the students? How’s it going to help teachers teach students?’” he said. “I’m glad to hear that I have your full support, and I want you to know that you have my full support. I look forward to being here until I finish my career.”

“We’ve all heard a lot over the course of the last month or two with regards to process, and maybe things could have been done better,” he added.

Haley also discussed his tenure as superintendent in Sebastopol, which ended shortly after a “no confidence” vote by teachers.

“It was a district facing many challenges,” said Haley. “I guided it through a very difficult period of time, and sometimes when one does that they have to turn things over to somebody else. After much soul searching with that board, I let them know that I wanted to take on a new challenge here in St. Helena.

Deluna said the board will schedule a special meeting to talk with the community about the future of the district under Haley’s leadership.

“This will be an opportunity for us to get together for a long period of time, and not be restricted by so many rules, and just be able to speak about what we want,” she said.