The Haines Borough school board considered but chose not to pursue a penalty against departing superintendent Ginger Jewell for breaking a three-year contract after only one year on the job, board chair Anne Marie Palmieri said this week.

“I think we can go our separate ways with grace,” Palmieri said this week.

Jewell’s contract binds her to standards adopted by the Professional Teaching Practices Commission and the district could file a grievance against Jewell through the commission for breaking the contract, Palmieri said.

But the commission’s penalties would apply only to Jewell’s certification to work in Alaska, and as Jewell is leaving the state, the action would only serve to create hard feelings, Palmieri said. Also, the district chose not to file a grievance when former music teacher Kristina Mulready broke her contract, Palmieri said.

Jewell’s contract included $103,000 for 260 days’ work, 30 working days paid vacation each fiscal year, and up to $5,000 in moving expenses to take the job. Palmieri said Jewell had sought a three-year contract after the district offered one for two years.

Asked if she was happy with the contract terms, Palmieri said, “These are the terms we negotiated with (Jewell). With someone else we might negotiate different terms.”

At a board workshop Tuesday, Palmieri told staff and fellow board members that she has three potential candidates to serve as interim superintendent, although only one may be able to do the job on a full-time basis.

Former superintendent Michael Byer said he could help the district between hours at his job at the University of Alaska-Southeast, Palmieri said. Palmieri said she’d like a superintendent on the job here by Aug. 1.

The job’s responsibilities are too numerous to have either principal Rene Martin or assistant principal Cheryl Stickler take on the job, Palmieri said.

At Tuesday’s workshop, board members reviewed a $4.8 million budget for the coming year that’s balanced using $134,000 from reserves. The spending plan includes a $369,000 reduction in state funding and is based on a projected district enrollment of 252 students.

Drawing out the $134,000 would leave about $750,000 in reserves, according to district figures. The board is expected to approve the budget at its regular meeting at noon Monday in the superintendent’s office.