Trustees unanimously approved a contract with Caldwell’s next superintendent at a Monday night meeting.

Jeremy Montoya will receive $160,000 a year for a two-year period. The agreement includes stipends for travel, mileage and a cellphone.

Montoya will replace outgoing superintendent Shalene French on July 1. Trustees approved Montoya’s contract without discussion.

The board selected Montoya after a lengthy executive session and a search process that came down to him and Caldwell administrator Julie Mead. A third finalist, Scott Root, withdrew after being hired in Cassia County.

Teacher inducted into National Teachers Hall of Fame

In other news Monday, the meeting agenda noted that Syringa Middle science teacher Melyssa Ferro will be inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame in June.

Ferro will be the second Idaho teacher ever inducted into the National Teachers Hall of Fame, which began in 1989.

Trustees also recognized Caldwell High’s VEX Robotics teams, one of which became state champions in February and will attend the VEX Robotics World Championship in Missouri this month.

Two robots played a ball game before the dais in a demonstration for the board.

Trustee Manuel Godina referenced the 1986 film Short Circuit, a sci-fi comedy in which an experimental military robot gains consciousness after being struck by lightning. Students and trustees looked confused, prompting a defeated Godina to explain the reference.