Red Lake School District names new superintendent

Students enrolled this fall in the Red Lake School District will be welcomed by a new superintendent.

Steve Wymore, currently the superintendent of Lake of the Woods School District in Baudette, Minn., signed the new contract at a Red Lake School District Board of Education meeting Wednesday.

Red Lake School District’s former superintendent, Brent Gish, announced his retirement earlier this summer. He had served as superintendent for the past four years.

Red Lake School Board Chairman Arnold Pemberton said Wymore was a good choice because he appeared to have good relations with members of the Minnesota Legislature.

“He knows a few people down there in the Legislature,” Pemberton said in a phone interview. “He knows his stuff.”

Pemberton said the district has been striving to update some major school projects, such as the replacement of a furnace and other equipment, but they require the district to seeking additional sources of funding.

“He stood out as the best one of the bunch,” Pemberton said.

At the Lake of the Woods school board meeting July 25, board members accepted the resignation of Wymore. Wymore announced he had been offered a position and negotiated a contract with Red Lake School District officials.

Wymore has been at Lake of the Woods since 2007. His new position will begin Aug. 1.

According to Willie Larson, Red Lake School District’s business manager, Wymore’s contract will be for three years at a starting annual salary of $127,500.

There is also a provision in his contract that calls for performance and incentive pay, Larson said, meaning Wymore will be required to meet with the school board and establish goals. Wymore would need to achieve these goals in order to increase his salary.