School board members have unanimously chosen an Indiana educator as the next superintendent of Rockford Public Schools.
Larry Huff comes to Rockford next school year with nearly two decades in education, but less than two years experience as superintendent in Elkhart Community Schools, an Indiana school system of about 11,000 students with 13 elementary schools, three middle schools and one high school.
Rockford School Board President Paul Carpenter said that in addition to his experience as a superintendent, Huff was a classroom teacher, principal and served as chief academic officer of the Metropolitan School District of Pike Township in Indianapolis.
Carpenter said Huff stood out in a field of very strong finalists for the job with a track record for improving academic performance. He also stood out during an interview portion of the hiring process.
“He scored highest with all of us,” Carpenter said. “We had three finalists and they were all pretty close … but he really was the top.”
Huff will be paid $285,000 in his first year at the helm of Rockford Public Schools under terms of a three-year contract that is still being finalized. He will get a base wage increase of 3% a year for each year of the contract. Performance goals will be ironed out in coming months.
Huff’s pay is 10.6% more than the $257,753 out-going Superintendent Ehren Jarrett is being paid this year, according to district records. Jarrett leaves July 1, 2026 after serving Rockford for 13 years to return to Hononegah Community High School District 207 as superintendent where he previously worked as a principal.
Carpenter said that the pay level was needed to be competitive with school districts the size and complexity of Rockford Public Schools, one of the state’s largest school systems with more than 28,000 students at 44 schools.
“We’ve got to look at districts our size and with our challenges,” Carpenter said.
Also built into the contract with Huff are 12 transition days between now and June 30. Huff will use those days to visit Rockford, meet with residents and stakeholders and learn more about the school system before his official start date.
“Anybody who meets him, I think is going to really like him,” Carpenter said. “We have confidence, complete confidence in him on the board.”
Jeff Kolkey writes about government, economic development and other issues for the Rockford Register Star. He can be reached via email at jkolkey@rrstar.com and on X @jeffkolkey.
This article originally appeared on Rockford Register Star: Rockford’s next school superintendent will earn $285K a year
Reporting by Jeff Kolkey, Rockford Register Star / Rockford Register Star
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