Three Ohio County school board members aren't specifying why they want to change the leader of a school system that had the best English language arts standardized test proficiency rate in the state last school year and the second-best rate in math.
Board President Shane Mallett, Vice President Gary Kestner and Tim Birch voted Tuesday to not renew Superintendent Dianna Vargo's contract. School system spokesman Gabe Wells said she's served the northern panhandle district for 32 years, the last four as superintendent, and she previously was assistant and deputy superintendent and a principal and teacher at Wheeling Park High.
Wells said Vargo intends to remain in the position until her current contract, which grants her a $150,000 annual salary, ends in June. Vargo declined to comment beyond a short prepared statement thanking other school system staff she's worked with.
"Our parents should know that your children's futures are very bright," she said. "We're gratified to have worked tirelessly on behalf of our students and we will continue to do so for the remainder of my tenure. Thank you."
Alongside the county's relatively high test scores compared with the rest of West Virginia, last month, Wheeling Park High won its first state football championship since it opened in 1976. It also won a state cheerleading championship.
School board member Sarah Koegler, who voted alongside Christine Carder to renew Vargo's contract, cited the county's test scores, athletic successes, Advanced Placement offerings and fine arts programs in explaining that she doesn't know why her fellow board members did what they did. She said Vargo was a strong leader, and the motion to not renew "shocked" her.
"From almost every aspect we are strong and we continue to get stronger," Koegler said. "And that's not all due to Dr. Vargo ... but it's not a situation where you say, 'hmm, that clearly needs a leadership change.'"
She said the three who voted not to renew Vargo's contract owe the public an explanation, even if they're not legally required to. She said there's no way the members made the decision with kids' best interests in mind.
"There's gotta be some other agenda," Koegler said. "I just don't know what it is."
Mallett told media after the vote that the board wanted to move in a "new direction." But he declined to tell the Gazette-Mail Thursday what that phrase meant.
"That borders on the employee matters," he said.
He also said he couldn't speak about Vargo's evaluations for the same reason. Koegler and Carder said the board consistently found Vargo met or exceeded all goals in those evaluations, even after they worked with the superintendent to make them more measurable and specific.
"When we interview the potential candidates, you'll see the direction, at least from my point of view, that I'd like the county to go in," Mallett said.
Birch said he could be sued for fully discussing the reasoning, but said it was one of the hardest votes he's ever had to make. He said Vargo has been a "wonderful administrator."
"I consider her a friend, and it killed me to have to vote against the contract - matter of fact, I had pains in my chest from the stress of it," he said. "... I just think we need a stronger leader to go to the next step."
When pressed on what this new direction or next step entailed, he first said he was uncomfortable discussing it but then said he wants to make Ohio schools more competitive nationally. He said he wants them to be as good as a local private school, the Linsly School, where he went to junior high. But he didn't offer more specifics on the exact national measures where he sees the system lagging.
He noted that while the county ranked high compared to the rest of West Virginia, the state has overall poor national rankings in education. Though it took the top spot on English standardized tests in West Virginia, still, only about six out of every 10 Ohio County students met proficiency in the subject. Its No. 2 ranking in math came despite a 38 percent proficiency rate.
"That's my problem, I want to get out of that bubble, that so-called bottom of the pile, and I think we deserve that; we need to get out of the bottom of the pile," he said.
He and Mallett said they have no idea about who they want to be the next superintendent, though Carder said she doesn't think that's the case. Kestner did not return calls for comment last week. Wells, the Ohio schools spokesman, said the new superintendent position will be posted this week.
Koegler and Carder said there was no discussion among the full board about not renewing the contract before Tuesday's meeting, at which the board quickly entered closed session. They said the other members didn't indicate during the roughly half-hour session that they weren't going to renew the contract.
Birch said board members didn't discuss the non-renewal outside of meetings before Tuesday's vote. State law requires publicly noticed meetings if a majority of members of a board want to discuss a issue requiring official action. Koegler said, "it's hard to imagine that those guys would sit by themselves and come to that decision," and Carder said a non-renewal motion was rumored beforehand.
"It was pretty much on the grapevine last week," she said. "Usually the custodians know first, and that was the case."
Carder said she worked as a teacher and administrator in the county for almost four decades, and said the county has never had a superintendent who worked harder or devoted more time than Vargo. Carder alleged the three male members of being involved in "back-room deals."
"They're sleazy, they're very sleazy and they're very sneaky," she said. "Short of breaking the law, very short of breaking the law."
Reach Ryan Quinn at ryan.quinn@wvgazettemail.com, facebook.com/ryanedwinquinn, 304-348-1254 or follow @RyanEQuinn on Twitter.