TRAVERSE CITY — The new superintendent of Northwest Education Services will make $249,000 a year, the board of trustees agreed.
North Ed’s board voted unanimously to approve the contract for Dr. Tara Mager at Tuesday’s regular board meeting. Treasurer Elizabeth Petrella and Trustee Jim Scherrer did not attend.
July 1 is the tentative start date for Mager, who will be taking over for Dr. Nick Ceglarek, who is retiring and has served North Ed as superintendent since 2017. In 2024, his salary was $277,923, according to North Ed’s annual website report.
In addition to the annual salary and a $25,000 optional relocation assistance payment, Mager’s contract states that, if she resigns within 12 months, a prorated portion of the relocation costs must be paid back.
A maximum yearly raise for Mager is capped at 5.4 percent.
If the board decides to terminate her employment for reasons not related to “acts of moral turpitude, or for other reason that are not arbitrary or capricious,” the board will be obligated to pay her one year’s salary.
An annual stipend of 12.5 percent of the base annual salary rate will be provided “in recognition of the Superintendent’s extensive experience in the field of education and her academic credentials,” the contract states.
In addition, Mager will receive 30 days of vacation time, a vehicle for work and 7 percent of the base salary rate contributed to a 403(b) tax-deferred annuity.
Board President Joseph Fisher said the Office of Retirement Services told him the contract may need to be “tweaked” to make it compliant with their office’s requirements.
Fisher said the adjustments may need to be approved at their next meeting, but the “substance” of the contract, the salary and retirement contributions, would remain the same.
Trustee Nicolette Brown asked if the board could give Fisher the power to approve those changes without requiring board action, since the changes are only expected to be “minor tweaks.”
Without knowing exactly what those tweaks might be, Fisher said, he was more comfortable bringing the revisions to the full board for its approval. But he reassured board members that the changes wouldn’t hold up the process.
Mager, who is the superintendent at Clare-Gladwin Regional Education Service District, has 20 years of experience working in public education, including as a superintendent, principal and guidance counselor at a K-12 school district.
She will officially receive her Ph.D. from Eastern Michigan University this month. She also holds degrees from Michigan State and Central Michigan universities.
Mager was on vacation and unable to attend Tuesday’s board meeting, but said in a press release that she is grateful to have the opportunity.
The intermediate school district serves 20,000 students and more than 30 school districts across Antrim, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska and Leelanau counties. It provides early childhood services, special education and vocational education programming for students, professional development for educators and various support services for districts.
The board chose Mager from a pool of 22 candidates, five of whom were interviewed.
