EASLEY — The Pickens County School Board voted Monday night to extend superintendent Dr. Danny Merck’s contract.

District policy dictates that the board is required to conduct an annual evaluation of the superintendent, and Merck was evaluated in the areas of student achievement, learning environment, quality personnel, communications and resource management, according to officials.

Following the evaluation, board members concluded Merck had performed above or exceeded expectations in student achievement, learning environment and quality personnel, met expectations in the area of communications and met or exceeded expectations in the area of resource management.

“While we strive for continuous improvement, we feel that Dr. Merck performed above our expectations for his initial overall evaluation,” school board chairman Dr. Brian Swords said in a statement issued by the school district Tuesday.

In light of Merck’s evaluation results, the board agreed to extend his contract by one year, and will review the compensation of his contract during the 2016-17 budget discussions.

“We value Dr. Merck’s service to our school district and we feel he is taking our school district in the right direction,” Swords said. “We look forward to working with him as we continue to strive to provide the best educational opportunities for our students.”