Hertsel announces retirement

Published 10:33 pm Wednesday, November 30, 2016

Cassopolis Superintendent Tracy Hertsel announced his intention to retire at the end of the 2016-17 school year as the board of education regular meeting Monday night.

Hertsel, who was hired in 2011, received a contract extension through 2018 in July.

Hertsel, who feels he is leaving the district on solid ground, sited personal reasons for his decision to retire at the end of the year.

When Hertsel took over as superintendent, Cassopolis Public Schools was struggling financially as was in danger of being the list of failing schools by the State of Michigan’s School Reform Office.

Now five years later, the district is on solid financial footing, recently passed a bond to make repairs to both Ross Beatty Jr./Sr. High School and Sam Adams Elementary.

Last month, the board of education reached a three-year deal with the teacher’s union and already has a three-year deal with the district’s service employees and a two-year agreement with its administrators.

“During public comments, I did announce I would be retiring June 30,” Hertsel said. “It is time. I have 29 years in the district. With everything that is going on in my personal life I felt it was time to make this happen.

“When I came the district was really in a bad financial way. At that time we were in danger of being put on the state list. I feel we have made great strides in that area. We are in good shape with the budget. We have made major improvements throughout the district that were very necessary.”

Hertsel said that he feels the building are being left in really good shape and that was important because the roofs were in need of repair.

“There were many things that had been identified for 20 years that we have addressed in the past couple of years,” he said. “So I feel really good about that.”

Hertsel was born and raised in Cassopolis and is a Cassopolis High School graduate.

More improvements will be done to the district’s technology and infrastructure before Hertsel leaves, as well as the work on the new track and football field.

The board also unanimously approved the departure from the BCS Athletic Conference to form a new league with other members of the BCS and the Southwest Athletic Conference.

Play for those teams is scheduled to begin in the fall of 2017.

The next regular meeting of the Cassopolis Board of Education will be held at 7 p.m. on Dec. 12 at the Squires Education Center.