Appleton Area School District Packet Summary — 2026-08-19
Meeting: Regular Board of Education Meeting - August 19, 2026 - 9:00 AM
The Board of Education is scheduled to consider personnel actions and a proposed 2026–2027 educator compensation increase. The agenda also provides an opportunity for public input and identifies several upcoming Board and committee meetings.
Key Items on the Agenda
2026–2027 Educator Compensation
The Board is scheduled to consider a resolution addressing educator compensation after negotiations between the district and the Appleton Education Association for Educators reached an impasse.
The resolution proposes implementing the district's last offer: a 2.63% CPI base-wage adjustment over the 2025–2026 base wage, along with supplemental compensation increases.
- Base wage increase: $1,667,628
- Supplemental increases: $635,932
- Total compensation increase: $2,303,560, identified in the resolution as 2.72% of total wages
- Level advancement: $1,574,540 for eligible educators
- Compensation structure adjustments: $729,020
- Proposed structure changes include adding $500 to each level, plus targeted increases of $450 to Level A and $300 to Levels B–D and Level X.
The resolution would also formally declare an impasse in negotiations over the 2026–2027 collective bargaining agreement and implement the compensation package for the 2026–2027 school year.
Personnel Items
Personnel actions appear both as information for Board decision preparation and on the Superintendent's Consent Agenda. Administrative recommendations call for approval of the submitted hires, resignations, and transfer.
Professional Educator New Hires
A revised personnel document recommends five educators for contractual positions for the 2026–2027 school year, effective August 24, 2026:
- Abigail F.W. Hessling — World Language-Spanish, Classical School, 100% FTE
- Marissa M. Marsh Worde — Grade 5/6, Fox River Academy, 100% FTE
- Dennis W. Meyer — Technology Education, Einstein, 100% FTE
- Jessica L. Nutt — Physical Education/Health, West, 90% FTE
- Beth M. Ott — School Counselor/Homeless Liaison, Appleton Bilingual/District, 100% FTE
The packet says salaries will be commensurate with education and experience. The revised document changes Jessica L. Nutt's listed assignment from 100% FTE in the earlier version to 90% FTE.
Professional Educator Resignations
The packet identifies two professional educators who submitted resignations effective at the end of the 2025–2026 school year:
- Amber L. Cittadino, most recently a Special Education Teacher at West High School, after 11 years with the district
- Jewel A. Brunner, most recently a Grade 5 Teacher at Highlands Elementary School, after three and one-half years with the district
The district expects to procure qualified replacements. The fiscal impact will depend on those replacements, and administration recommends approval as submitted.
Administrative Hire
The packet recommends Jay P. Coonen for the contractual position of Associate Principal / Activities Director at West High School, starting August 24, 2026. Coonen most recently served as Dean of Students at West High School.
The packet states that salary will be commensurate with education and experience and recommends approval as submitted.
Administrative Transfer
The packet recommends transferring Michael T. Dexheimer to Principal of Edison Elementary for the 2026–2027 school year. Dexheimer has been with the district for two years and most recently served as an Associate Principal of Highlands Elementary and Principal of Odyssey Magnet School.
The packet identifies no instructional or fiscal impact from the transfer and recommends approval as submitted.
The agenda includes a Public Input period. It also provides an opportunity for Board members to remove items from a consent agenda for separate consideration before approval of the agenda.
No special presentation, Board development item, Board consent agenda item, personnel services report, business services report, school/student services report, or general item of information is listed for this meeting.
What to Watch at the Meeting
- Educator compensation: The central Board business item is the proposed $2.30 million compensation increase and resolution declaring an impasse with the Appleton Education Association for Educators.
- Personnel actions: The Superintendent's Consent Agenda includes professional educator hires and resignations, an administrative hire, and an administrative transfer.
- Revised educator hiring information: The revised new-hire document lists one assignment—Jessica L. Nutt's Physical Education/Health position at West—at 90% FTE rather than the 100% FTE shown in the earlier packet version.
Upcoming Meetings
The agenda lists four upcoming meetings:
- Board Work Session: Wednesday, August 19, 2026, at 9:30 AM
- Policy Committee Meeting: Friday, August 21, 2026, at 8:15 AM
- Board Meeting: Monday, August 24, 2026, at 6:00 PM
- Financial Planning Committee Meeting: Tuesday, August 25, 2026, at 4:00 PM
