District tabs Smet for superintendent spot

By Jennifer Eisenbart

Staff writer

After two weeks of uncertainty about who the replacement would be for Burlington Area School District Superintendent David Moyer, the district announced his likely replacement Thursday – Assistant Superintendent Peter Smet.

A BASD School Board action meeting is set for Monday at 6:30 p.m. at the district offices for formal approval of Smet’s promotion.

Moyer’s final day is June 30. He is leaving to accept the superintendent position for the Moline (Ill.) School District No. 40.

“Peter did an excellent job as my assistant,” Moyer said. “His skill and expertise was something that was very helpful to me, coming into a new state in my first superintendent position.

“I have nothing but respect for the job he did,” he added. “Obviously, the board recognized certain qualities that they thought made him the right person for the district at this time.”

Smet has served in his current role since 1996. He came to Burlington in 1988 when he was named the Vocational/Technology Coordinator for the district. He was the Local Vocational Education Coordinator for the Wisconsin Dells School District from 1985-1988. He began his career as a technology education teacher in Wisconsin Dells in 1983.

Smet earned a Master of Science degree in Educational Administration from the University of Wisconsin in 1988 and a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Education from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville in 1982. He obtained a School Business Manager certification from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater in 1996 and his Superintendent’s certification through the WiscAd program and St. Mary’s (Minn.) University in 2007.

With BASD in a time of turmoil – a drop in state aid and declining enrollment, combined with a concerted effort by conservatives to keep taxes right where they are – Smet knows he will have his hands full.

“I really do feel everyone in Burlington wants it to be a great place,” Smet said. “The question is: how do we do that? It’s really going to be a challenge to do that. It’s something I think I’m capable of doing. That’s going to be my challenge.”

School Board President David Thompson said a number of factors went into the decision to hire internally, not the least of which was having someone familiar with the district and Moyer’s “Roadmap to Instructional Excellence.”

“We felt it was very important that we have somebody local,” Thompson said. “We felt it was important to have somebody who was going to carry on the roadmap.

“The board is very excited about having such a high-quality superintendent coming in,” he added.

For a full story, please see next week’s print edition of the Burlington Standard Press.