At a school board meeting held March 14, it was announced that Dr. E. Ric Frataccia was selected to lead the district as the new superintendent of Portage Township Schools.

It was determined that Frataccia, who has been serving the district since 2005 as associate superintendent, will be holding an interim position, meaning that he will serve for a two-year period before another replacement is selected.

“It’s important for me to do as well as I can do every day. I know myself, and I know that I can do that for two years. I don’t want to sign a three-year contract or a five-year contract knowing that I can do two years excellently,” Frataccia said.

Frataccia said that his ultimate goal while serving in the position is to ensure that the culture that has been put in place in the district “stays and gets solidified.”

Frataccia will officially take over July 1 following current superintendent Michael Berta’s retirement.

Like Berta, Frataccia has a background in education; he graduated from The State University of New York in 1971 and received his master’s and doctorate of education degrees from Ball State University.

Frataccia taught in New York and Texas before relocating to Indiana. He spent four years as the principal of Northview Elementary School in Valparaiso, and later served as director of elementary education for Valparaiso Community Schools before serving 10 years as superintendent for the Union Township School Corporation. Following Frataccia’s retirement from Union Township, Berta encouraged him to serve at Portage Township Schools as the associate superintendent.