Morris School District Taps Interim Super While Searching for Long-Term Chief

The Morris School District Board of Education has named an experienced interim superintendent to handle that post in the district while the search for a long-term schools chief continues.

At its most recent board meeting the schools’ governing body appointed Catherine Mozak, pending contract approval, to take the helm effective Oct. 1 when the position is vacated by Dr. Thomas Ficarra, who is retiring.

Mozak served as superintendent of schools in Park Ridge from 1991 to 2003, and has served as an interim superintendent in several school districts since then.

Most recently Mozak was the interim superintendent in nearby Denville from 2012 to 2014.

At this time the board is in the process of identifying a firm to conduct the search for a new superintendent.

Ficarra announced his retirement over the summer after spending 12 years in the district. The superintendent said he would stay on for the first month of September to oversee a smooth transition into the start of the school year.

According to public records, Ficarra’s annual salary in 2012-13 was $216,635. Under legislation signed in 2011, a new superintendent for the Morris School District could not earn more than $165,000 annually based on the size of the enrollment.