At the same meeting where Neshaminy School District support staff members filled the room and were begging for their jobs not to be outsourced, the school board voted to extend Superintendent Robert Copeland’s contract and give him a pay raise.
Credit: Tom Sofield/LevittownNow.com
The board voted to approve the extension and increase, while board member Mike Morris was the lone dissenting vote.
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Copeland currently earns $171,000, according to state records. Board solicitor Thomas Profy said Tuesday night that Copeland will make $185,000 starting next year, which is about an 8 percent increase. The modified contract will keep Copeland in the district until September 30, 2017.
The “contract modification and extension” was not on the agenda prior to the meeting.
With the large group of support staff members in the audience, the vote was not met favorably. The support staff members, many of whom are concerned they will lose their jobs, filled the meeting room.
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Middletown Steve Rodos praised Copeland’s work in the district. Board member Steve Pirritano also praised Copeland’s work as the district top hired leader.
In comparison, Pennsbury School District Superintendent Dr. Kevin McHugh makes $180,000 a year, Bristol Township School District Superintendent Dr. Sam Lee makes $160,000 and outgoing Bristol Borough School District Superintendent Gregory Wright makes $139,000.
Copeland told the audience he was “looking forward” to serving the district.
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Copeland has served at Neshaminy’s superintendent since 2012. He was hired under a three-year contract in August and began his duties on October 1, 2012.
Copeland came to Neshaminy after serving as superintendent in New Jersey’s Piscataway School District. He had previously named Superintendent of the Year by the New Jersey Association of School Administrators.
Copeland made $213,000 in 2012 at Piscataway School District, according to a NJ.com report. The Piscataway School District serves a middle-class community and slightly less students than Neshaminy.
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“I am so much looking forward to coming to work here in Neshaminy,” Copeland said to the board following the vote to hire him in 2012.
School board member Mark Shubin praised Copeland’s hiring at the time. He said the new superintendent was a “CEO-type of superintendent” and it marked a “new beginning” for the school system.
Copeland replaced Louis Muenker, who announced his resignation in January 2012. He had served as superintendent of the district since 2008 and served in various administrative roles since 1990.
