Board debates Pethick future Phillipsburg school superintendent faces contract renewal vote. Tuesday, June 26, 2007 • By DANIEL HAUSMANN • The Express-Times PHILLIPSBURG | The working fate of school district Superintendent Gordon Pethick remained undetermined as of late Monday night. As of 11:45 p.m., the school board had not come to a vote on whether or not to renew Pethick's contract. The superintendent's three-year agreement expires at the end of next June but the board is contractually obligated to notify the chief administrator of its intentions by the end of this month. Pethick earns $143,000 annually in salary and longevity pay. The Allentown resident has been superintendent since 1999 and this will mark his third notification year. Several disputes at school board meetings over the former labor attorney, the expired teachers contract and the public firing of a principal have put Pethick at odds with more than half of the school board. In April, a split board placed a ceremonial "no confidence" vote in Pethick regarding the negotiations with teachers. That came after Pethick filed an ethics complaint against board Negotiations Committee Chairman Kevin DeGerolamo; the complaint was dismissed. Last month in a similar vote, the board rejected Pethick's recommendation and decided not to renew Andover-Morris Principal Jeanette Gilliland. At board meetings over the past year, the subject of this being Pethick's notification year has come up several times, most notably in January when town council President David DeGerolamo, Kevin's brother, took issue with some perks in Pethick's contract. A district employee since 1972, Pethick has had tenure for more than 30 years. If the board were to move on after June 30, 2008, without a tenure proceeding, Pethick could fall back to a prior position at his current salary. He said any personal action would depend on family issues. Reporter Daniel Hausmann can be reached at 610-258-7171 or by e-mail at dhausmann@express-times.com.