South Butler School District acting Superintendent Frank Prazenica Jr. said Wednesday he was thankful for the support he received while on the job.

SAXONBURG — South Butler School District acting Superintendent Frank Prazenica Jr. bid the district a fond farewell Wednesday at his last school board meeting before new Superintendent David Foley steps into the position next week.

Prazenica, a former district superintendent who returned to the job after David Zupsic resigned from the position in June, thanked everyone for being supportive.

“You've got people with positive attitudes in all these levels,” Prazenica said.

He also wished Foley well.

The board hired Foley, who has been the superintendent of West Middlesex Area School District in Mercer County for the last five years, in November at an annual salary of $150,000. His first day will be Jan. 15.

Board President Matthew Cimbala commended Prazenica for returning to the job and leading the search that resulted in hiring Foley.

He thanked Prazenica, who was the superintendent when he became a board member eight or nine years ago, for teaching him about the district and for his service.

“This man is an educator, a teacher deep down inside,” Cimbala said.

In a personnel matter, the board voted 6-3 in favor of hiring Melissa Grantz as Knoch High School assistant principal at a salary of $72,000.

Grantz, a high school teacher, will start her new job after her current position is filled, Cimbala said.

Board members Jill McDonald, Donna Eakin and Rebecca Boyd voted against the hiring.

Eakin said she supported a different candidate for the job and wished Grantz well in the position, but she said she was disappointed in the administration's handling of the interview process.

She said the board agreed to hire a different candidate, who was offered the job in September. However the administration didn't follow up on the offer in a timely manner and the candidate ultimately didn't take the job, she said.

Eakin was referring to Michael Barlak, who was offered the job but accepted a position in another district.

The board hired Jeff Schnur, a retired Butler School District principal, as acting assistant principal at last week's committee meeting at $325 a day. He started Monday and will stay on until Grantz takes over.

The position opened up after Kaitlin Remensky resigned to accept a job in another district.

The board also voted to accept audited financial statements for the fiscal year that ended June 30 last year after Beth Dittmer of the Maher Duessel accounting firm said the audit revealed no problems.