Jim Thorpe School Board members have voted against a new contract for their superintendent, whose current deal runs out in June.

The board now plans to begin a search to replace John Rushefski, who served as the district’s top administrator since July 2019.

Rushefski said he was happy and grateful for the time he spent in the district.

“I can’t say enough about this community and students, and I’m grateful for that opportunity,” he said.

Rushefski’s future with the district had been up in the air since November. At the time, board members tabled a vote on whether to extend his contract or begin a superintendent search.

Board President Scott Pompa said that in the months since he decided the district could find someone with similar strengths, who was more willing to work to achieve the board’s objectives.

“It gave me time to reflect and think that we could probably go in a different direction,” Pompa said.

The board looks a lot different today than it did when Rushefski was hired. Four current members won election in 2019: Pompa, TJ Garritano, Cindy Lesisko-Henning and Paul Montemuro. Richard Flacco, who was already seeking a four-year seat in November’s election, was appointed to the board after Raniero Marciante resigned in August. All of them voted against a new contract for Rushefski.

Jerry Strubinger, Dennis McGinley and Glenn Confer were on the board in 2019, and voted in favor of a new contract. Pearl Downs-Sheckler voted in 2019 to hire Rushefski, but against the new contract.

Pompa said that the new board members set clear goals when they were elected, and he didn’t feel that sufficient progress had been made.

“I felt it was bogged down, it wasn’t happening at the pace we hoped it would,” Pompa said.

One area of concern was the district budget. The district has run multimillion dollar deficits since before Rushefski was hired. Pompa said he hoped to see the administration do more to control and cut expenses.

“We are what I consider a conservative board. We’re always looking for ways to cut spending,” Pompa said.

The district has kept taxes at the same level since 2014. Over that time, cybercharter tuition, special education and pension contributions have brought millions in new expenses.

On Monday, the board heard a report on its audit from the 2020-21 school year, which showed a $3.5 million loss.

Board member Paul Montemuro, who chairs the personnel committee, said the board needs to solve its financial woes by cutting expenses rather than raising taxes. He said that wasn’t happening quick enough with the current administration.

“I personally don’t want taxes to go up. We have to start cutting. We have to start itemizing,” Montemuro said.