Olympia School Board hires McLane principal, extends superintendent contract

McLane Elementary School’s Monica West gets to remove the word “interim” from her title.

The Olympia School Board unanimously voted 5-0 Monday night to hire West permanently as the 350-student school’s principal; she assumed the post on a provisional basis in August.

“Over the past few weeks, I have connected with many groups and individuals about how Monica has been doing as principal, and the feedback I’ve received has been excellent,” said superintendent Dick Cvitanich. “I am very pleased that our McLane students and families, as well as Monica’s colleagues, will be able to lean on her skills, leadership and many years of experience as we begin planning for the next school year and beyond.”

West has a bachelor’s degree from the College of Idaho, a master’s in educational leadership from Portland State University and administrative credentials from Seattle Pacific University.

Before leading McLane, she was assistant principal and dean of students at Jefferson Middle School. She also served as the district’s math instructional specialist, and was Capital High School’s dean of students.

“I am very excited about being a permanent part of the McLane family and helping each student achieve their very best,” West said.

In other news, the Olympia School Board unanimously approved a one-year extension to Cvitanich’s contract. He has been at the helm of the 8,800-student school since last July, and his new three-year term will expire June 30, 2016.

Cvitanich’s annual salary, which is $178,275 a year, and other conditions in the contract did not change, according to district spokeswoman Rebecca Japhet.

Read more about Cvitanich’s contract in this Olympian archives story.