Scholastic appointed Ken Cleary as its new CFO last week, succeeding Maureen O’Connell. O’Connell, Scholastic’s long-time CFO and chief administrative officer, “was terminated from all positions with the company and its subsidiaries and affiliates on October 27,” Scholastic said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
In a press release announcing the personnel change, Scholastic chairman Dick Robinson said the departure of O’Connell “did not arise from any issues involving the company's financial results—which are meeting our expectations—business practices, internal controls, or financial reporting procedures."
In Scholastic’s SEC filing, the company said that financial arrangements and other terms connected to O’Connell’s termination are “under discussion.” In the fiscal year ended May 31, 2017, O’Connell had a base salary of $750,000, and with stock awards and other incentives earned over $2.2 million.
Prior to his promotion, Cleary was Scholastic's senior v-p and chief accounting officer. In addition to Cleary’s promotion, Paul Hukkanen, v-p, external reporting and compliance, was named v-p and chief accounting officer, and Vincent Lucinese was promoted to v-p, controller and shared services support.
