It is official. Niles has its next superintendent.

On Wednesday, the Niles Community Schools Board of Education approved a three-year contract with Dan Applegate, a former district employee who now works as assessment and accreditation coordinator at Saint Mary’s College in Notre Dame, Indiana.

Applegate will receive a salary of $125,000 and is scheduled to begin tentatively on April 1, according to interim superintendent Michael Lindley.

Applegate will serve as superintendent-elect under the tutelage of Lindley until June 1 when he officially becomes superintendent.

The board approved the contract by a 6-0 vote with Katherine Zeider absent.

Applegate was not in attendance at Wednesday’s meeting, which was rescheduled from Monday due to heavy snowfall.

Applegate said he believes Niles is the right fit for him in a Jan. 21 interview with the Daily Star.

“I knew that there were great people working there that will support you if you work hard and they know you care,” he said. “It is a culture that you want to be a part of.”

Last year, the school board began its search to replace former superintendent Richard Weigel, who resigned in February of 2014.

Lindley was hired to serve as interim superintendent for the remainder of the 2013-14 school year and the entire 2014-15 school year.

The board started with a pool of 23 candidates and interviewed the six it determined were best suited to lead the district.

Applegate rose to the top of the list based largely on the relationships and reputation he built while working in the Niles district for 14 years. He received strong vocal and written support from the public, teachers and administration during the interview process.

Applegate also said he is willing to be the superintendent for at least 10 years — something the board wanted in its next school leader.

Prior to taking a job at Saint Mary’s College in 2013, Applegate worked as the Niles school district’s director of instruction from 2010 to 2012. He worked as the district’s director of special education from 2008 to 2012 and, before that, he was a school psychologist with Berrien RESA housed at Niles from 1998 to 2008.