Document:

<PAGE>

                                                                     EXHIBIT 4.9

                                     CONSENT

     THIS CONSENT (this "Amendment") dated as of April 26, 2002 relating to the
Credit Agreement referenced below is by and among School Specialty, Inc., a
Wisconsin corporation (the "Borrower"), the Subsidiaries of the Borrower
identified as "Guarantors" on the signature pages hereto, the Lenders identified
on the signature pages hereto and Bank of America, N.A., as Administrative Agent
(in such capacity, the "Administrative Agent"). Terms used herein but not
otherwise defined herein shall have the meanings provided to such terms in the
Credit Agreement.

                               W I T N E S S E T H

     WHEREAS, a $350 million credit facility has been extended to the Borrower
pursuant to the terms of that Amended and Restated Credit Agreement dated as of
September 30, 1998 (as amended, modified, supplemented, increased and extended
from time to time, the "Credit Agreement") by and among the Borrower, the
Guarantors, the Lenders and the Administrative Agent;

     WHEREAS, the Borrower has requested a consent under the Credit Agreement;
and

     WHEREAS, the Required Lenders have agreed to the requested consent on the
terms and conditions set forth herein.

     NOW, THEREFORE, IN CONSIDERATION of the premises and other good and
valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby
acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

     1. Consent to Release of Liens. Pursuant to the Consent and Amendment dated
November 20, 2000 (the "Consent"), the Required Lenders (i) approved the
Borrower and certain of its Subsidiaries entering into a Securitization
Transaction on substantially the terms set forth in the Consent (the "Permitted
Securitization Transaction") and (ii) authorized and directed the Administrative
Agent to enter into an Intercreditor Agreement on substantially the terms set
forth in the Consent (the "Intercreditor Agreement"). The Borrower intends to
cause Premier Agendas, Inc., a wholly owned Subsidiary of the Borrower and a
Guarantor under the Credit Agreement, to become a party to the Permitted
Securitization Transaction. In connection therewith, the Required Lenders hereby
(i) consent to the release by the Administrative Agent of the security interest
and liens of the Administrative Agent, for the benefit of the Lenders, in all of
the Property described on Schedule 1 hereto and (ii) authorize and direct the
Administrative Agent to enter into an amendment to the Intercreditor Agreement
in connection with the joinder of Premier Agendas, Inc. to the Permitted
Securitization Transaction.

     2. Conditions Precedent. This Amendment shall be effective as of the date
hereof upon receipt by the Administrative Agent of multiple counterparts of this
Amendment executed by the Credit Parties and the Required Lenders;

     3. Reaffirmation of Representations and Warranties. The Credit Parties
hereby affirm that the representations and warranties set forth in the Credit
Documents are true and correct as of the date hereof after giving effect to this
Amendment (except those that expressly relate to an earlier period).

     4. Reaffirmation of Guaranty. Each of the Guarantors (i) acknowledges and
consents to all of the terms and conditions of this Amendment, (ii) affirms all
of its obligations under the Credit Documents

<PAGE>

and (iii) agrees that this Amendment and all documents executed in connection
herewith do not operate to reduce or discharge the Guarantors' obligations under
the Credit Agreement and the other Credit Documents.

     5. No Other Changes. Except as modified hereby, all of the terms and
provisions of the Credit Agreement and the other Credit Documents (including the
schedules and exhibits thereto) shall remain in full force and effect.

     6. Cost and Expenses. The Borrower agrees to pay all reasonable costs and
expenses of the Administrative Agent in connection with the preparation,
execution and delivery of this Amendment, including without limitation the
reasonable fees and expenses of Moore & Van Allen, PLLC.

     7. Counterparts. This Amendment may be executed in any number of
counterparts, each of which when so executed and delivered shall be deemed an
original and it shall not be necessary in making proof of this Amendment to
produce or account for more than one such counterpart.

     8. Governing Law. This Amendment shall be deemed to be a contract made
under, and for all purposes shall be construed in accordance with, the laws of
the State of New York.

                  [Remainder of Page Intentionally Left Blank]

                                       2

<PAGE>

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, each of the parties hereto has caused a counterpart of
this Amendment to be duly executed and delivered as of the date first above
written.

BORROWER:                           SCHOOL SPECIALTY, INC.
                                    a Wisconsin corporation

                                    By:     /s/ Mary M. Kabacinski
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  Mary M. Kabacinski
                                    Title: Chief Financial Officer

GUARANTORS:                         CHILDCRAFT EDUCATION CORP.,
                                    a New York corporation
                                    CLASSROOMDIRECT.COM, LLC,
                                    a Delaware limited liability company
                                    BIRD-IN-HAND WOODWORKS, INC.,
                                    a New Jersey corporation
                                    SPORTIME, LLC,
                                    a Delaware limited liability company
                                    GLOBAL VIDEO, LLC,
                                    a Wisconsin limited liability company
                                    PREMIER AGENDAS, INC.,
                                    a Washington corporation

                                    By:     /s/ Mary M. Kabacinski
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  Mary M. Kabacinski
                                    Title: Treasurer

                           [Signature Pages Continue]

<PAGE>

LENDERS:                   BANK OF AMERICA, N.A., a national banking
                           association formerly known as NationsBank, N.A.,
                           individually as a Lender and in its capacity as
                           Administrative Agent

                           By:     /s/ Casey Cosgrove
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  Casey Cosgrove
                           Title: Vice President

                           BANK ONE, NA (main office, Chicago)

                           By:     /s/ Anthony Maggiore
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  Anthony F. Maggiore
                           Title: Director

                           U.S. BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION

                           By:     /s/ Elliott Jaffee
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  Elliott Jaffee
                           Title: Senior Vice President

                           THE BANK OF NEW YORK

                           By:     /s/ Mark Wrigley
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  Mark Wrigley
                           Title: Assistant Vice President

                           HARRIS TRUST AND SAVINGS BANK

                           By:     /s/ George M. Dluhy
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  George M. Dluhy
                           Title: Vice President

                           FIRSTAR BANK, N.A. (formerly known as Firstar Bank
                           Milwaukee, N.A.)

                           By:_________________________________________
                           Name:
                           Title:

                           CITIZENS BANK OF MASSACHUSETTS, as successor to
                           USTRUST

                           By:     /s/ John E. Lucas
                              -----------------------------------------
                           Name:  John E. Lucas
                           Title: Vice President

                           [Signature Pages Continue]

<PAGE>

                                    LASALLE BANK NATIONAL ASSOCIATION

                                    By:     /s/ Lou D. Banach
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  Lou D. Banach
                                    Title: First Vice President & Senior Lender

                                    ST. FRANCIS BANK, F.S.B.

                                    By:     /s/ John C. Tans
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  John C. Tans
                                    Title: Vice President

                                    UNION BANK OF CALIFORNIA, N.A.

                                    By:     Clifford F. Cho
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  Clifford F. Cho
                                    Title: Assistant Vice President

                                    WACHOVIA BANK, N.A.

                                    By:_________________________________________
                                    Name:
                                    Title:

                                    MARSHALL & ILSLEY BANK

                                    By:     /s/ Leo D. Freeman
                                       -----------------------------------------
                                    Name:  Leo D. Freeman
                                    Title: Vice President

<PAGE>

                                   SCHEDULE 1

                             Property to be Released

All of the following assets, whether now or hereafter arising: (a) all Purchased
Receivables, (b) all Collections, (c) each Lock-Box, (d) each Collection
Account, (e) all Related Security, (f) all other rights and payments relating to
the Receivables, and (g) all proceeds of any of the foregoing. As used in this
Schedule 1, the following terms shall have the following meanings:

               "Borrower" means School Specialty, Inc., a Wisconsin corporation.

               "Collection Account" means each concentration account, depository
               account, lock-box account or similar account in which any
               Collections are collected or deposited.

               "Collections" means, with respect to any Purchased Receivable,
               all cash collections and other cash proceeds in respect of such
               Purchased Receivable, including, without limitation, all yield,
               Finance Charges, or other related amounts accruing in respect
               thereof and all cash proceeds of Related Security with respect to
               such Purchased Receivable.

               "Contract" means any instrument, agreement, invoice or other
               writing between an Originator and an Obligor for the sale of
               goods or the rendering of services by such Originator to such
               Obligor.

               "Finance Charges" means, with respect to a Purchased Receivable,
               any finance, interest, late payment charges or similar charges
               owing by an Obligor pursuant to the related Contract.

               "Lock-Box" means each locked postal box with respect to which a
               bank holding one or more Collection Accounts has been granted
               exclusive access for the purpose of retrieving and processing
               payments made on the Purchased Receivables.

               "Obligor" means a Person obligated to make payments to an
               Originator pursuant to a Contract.

               "Original Seller" means each of ClassroomDirect.com, LLC, a
               Delaware limited liability company, Childcraft Education Corp., a
               New York corporation, Global Video, LLC, a Wisconsin limited
               liability company, Sportime, LLC, a Delaware limited liability
               company, and Premier Agendas, Inc., a Washington corporation, in
               their respective capacities as sellers under the Receivables
               Transfer Agreements.

               "Originator" means an Original Seller or the Borrower.

               "Person" means an individual, partnership, corporation (including
               a business trust), limited liability company, joint stock
               company, trust, unincorporated association, joint venture or
               other entity, or a government or any political subdivision or
               agency thereof.

               "Purchased Receivables" means (i) all Receivables sold,
               contributed or otherwise transferred by an Original Seller to the
               Borrower under and pursuant to the terms of the Receivables
               Transfer Agreements and subsequently sold, contributed or
               otherwise

<PAGE>

               transferred by the Borrower to the Transferee under and pursuant
               to the terms of the Receivables Sales Agreement, and (ii) all
               other Receivables sold, contributed or otherwise transferred by
               the Borrower to the Transferee under and pursuant to the terms of
               the Receivables Sales Agreement.

               "Receivable" means the indebtedness and other obligations,
               whether constituting an account, chattel paper, instrument,
               payment intangible or general intangible, arising in connection
               with the sale of goods or the rendering of services by an
               Originator and further includes, without limitation, the
               obligation to pay any Finance Charges with respect thereto.

               "Receivables Sale Agreement" means that certain Receivables Sale
               Agreement, dated on or about November 20, 2000, between the
               Transferee and the Borrower (as such agreement may be amended,
               restated, supplemented, or otherwise modified form time to time).

               "Receivables Transfer Agreement" means each of those certain
               Receivables Transfer Agreements, dated on or about November 20,
               2000 or April 30, 2002, between the Borrower and each of the
               Original Sellers (as such agreements may be amended, restated,
               supplemented, or otherwise modified form time to time).

               "Records" means, with respect to any Purchased Receivable, all
               Contracts and other documents, books, records and other
               information (including, without limitation, computer programs,
               tapes, disks, punch cards, data processing software and related
               property and rights) relating to such Purchased Receivable, any
               Related Security therefor and the related Obligor.

               "Related Security" means, with respect to any Purchased
               Receivable:

                    (a)   all security interests or liens and property subject
                    thereto from time to time, if any, purporting to secure
                    payment of such Purchased Receivable, whether pursuant to
                    the Contract related to such Purchased Receivable or
                    otherwise, together with all financing statements and
                    security agreements describing any collateral securing such
                    Purchased Receivable,

                    (b)   all guaranties, letters of credit, insurance and other
                    agreements or arrangements of whatever character from time
                    to time supporting or securing payment of such Purchased
                    Receivable whether pursuant to the Contract related to such
                    Purchased Receivable or otherwise,

                    (c)   all service contracts and other contracts and
                    agreements associated with such Purchased Receivable,

                    (d)   all Records and rights under the Contract(s) related
                    to such Purchased Receivable,

                    (e)   all of the Borrower's right, title and interest in, to
                    and under the Receivables Transfer Agreement in respect of
                    such Purchased Receivable, and

                    (f)   all proceeds of any of the foregoing.

<PAGE>

               "Transferee" means New School, Inc., a Delaware corporation.<PAGE>

                                                                    EXHIBIT 10.5

                              EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT

     THIS EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT, dated as of this 1st day of May, 2002, and
having an "Effective Date" of May 1, 2002, is by and between SCHOOL SPECIALTY,
INC., a Wisconsin corporation (the "Company") and DAVID J. VANDER ZANDEN
("Employee").

                                    RECITALS

     The Company desires to continue to employ Employee and to have the benefit
of his skills and services, and Employee desires to accept employment with the
Company on the terms and conditions set forth herein.

     This Employment Agreement supercedes and cancels any other prior employment
agreements or understandings, written or oral, between the Company and the
Employee.

     NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises, terms, covenants
and conditions set forth herein, and the performance of each, the parties
hereto, intending legally to be bound, hereby agree as follows:

                                   AGREEMENTS

     1.   Employment and Duties. The Company hereby agrees to employ the
          Employee and the Employee hereby accepts employment as the Chief
          Operating Officer and President of the Company and agrees to devote
          his full business time and efforts to the diligent and faithful
          performance of his duties as Chief Operating Officer and President of
          the Company hereunder under the direction of the Chief Executive
          Officer of the Company. Such duties shall be performed from
          headquarters in the Greenville, Wisconsin, area. Throughout the term
          of this Agreement, the Employee shall be recommended by the Board of
          the Company, to its shareholders as a suitable candidate for a
          position on the Board of Directors of the Company.

     2.   Term of Employment. Unless sooner terminated as hereinafter provided,
          the term of the Employee's employment hereunder shall commence with
          and only with the Effective Date and shall continue for a period of
          three (3) years (the "Term"). This Agreement may be terminated prior
          to the end of the Term in the manner provided herein. In the event
          that this agreement is not terminated pursuant to the terms of this
          Agreement, following the first year of the Term of three (3) years or
          the first year of any renewal terms thereof, said agreement shall
          extend for successive renewal terms of three (3) years each measured
          from the date of renewal, unless either party shall notify the other
          party of their desire to not renew the term of this agreement, with
          said notice to be made no later than ninety (90) days prior to the
          expiration of the first year of the Term of this agreement or any then
          effective first year of any renewal term thereof.

<PAGE>

     3.   Compensation. For all services rendered by Employee, the Company shall
          compensate Employee as follows:

          (a)  Base Salary. Effective on the date hereof, the annual base salary
               payable to Employee shall be Three Hundred Ten Thousand Dollars
               ($310,000.00) per year or such greater amount as determined from
               time to time by the Board of Directors of the Company (but not
               reviewed less frequently than on an annual basis), payable on a
               regular basis in accordance with the Company's standard payroll
               procedures, but not less than monthly. It is understood that the
               base salary is a minimum amount, and shall not be reduced during
               the term of this Agreement.

          (b)  Incentive Bonus. During the initial term and any extensions
               thereof, Employee shall be eligible to receive an incentive bonus
               based upon his participation in the Company's current senior
               management bonus program or successor senior management bonus
               programs, when effective. The first and last years of employment
               will be prorated.

          (c)  Perquisites, Benefits, and Other Compensation. During the initial
               term and any extensions thereof, Employee shall be entitled to
               receive all perquisites and benefits as are customarily provided
               by the Company to its executive employees, subject to such
               changes, additions, or deletions as the Company may make
               generally from time to time, as well as such other perquisites or
               benefits as may be specified from time to time by the Board of
               Directors or the Chief Executive Officer of the Company.
               Throughout the term of this Agreement, and during any period of
               salary continuation hereunder, the Employee and his family shall
               continue to be covered under all health insurance coverage of the
               Company afforded its senior management, at the then effective
               cost sharing arrangement between the Employee and the Company.
               Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Agreement or any
               documents relating to qualified or non-qualified stock options,
               all such outstanding stock options which were outstanding on the
               Effective Date and are unvested at the time of termination of
               employment of the Employee with the Company shall be vested in
               full upon such termination, unless such termination is
               effectuated by the Company for cause.

     4.   Covenants and Conditions.

          (a)  The Employee will acquire information and knowledge respecting
               the intimate and confidential affairs of the Company in the
               various phases of its business. Accordingly, the Employee agrees
               that he shall not for a period of two (2) years following the
               termination of his employment with the Company, use for himself
               or disclose to any person not employed by the Company any such
               knowledge or information heretofore acquired or acquired during
               the term of this employment hereunder including but not limited
               to the prescribed requirements of (S) 134.90 of the Wisconsin
               Statutes, as hereinafter amended from time to time. Nothing in
               this agreement shall be

                                                                          Page 2

<PAGE>

               construed to limit or supersede the common law of torts or
               statutory or other protection of trade secrets where such law
               provides the Company with greater protections or protections for
               a longer duration than that provided in this section 4 of this
               Agreement.

          (b)  The Employee agrees that all memoranda, notes, records, papers,
               or other documents and all copies thereof relating to the
               Company's operations or business, some of which may be prepared
               by him, and all objects associated therewith (such as models and
               samples) in any way obtained by him shall be the Company's
               property. This shall include, but is not limited to, documents
               and objects concerning any process, apparatus, or product
               manufactured, used, developed, investigated, or considered by the
               Company. The Employee shall not, except for Company use, copy or
               duplicate any of the aforementioned documents or objects, nor
               remove them from the Company's facilities, nor use any
               information concerning them except for the Company's benefit,
               either during his employment or thereafter. The Employee agrees
               that he will deliver all of the aforementioned documents and
               objects that may be in his possession to the Company on
               termination of his employment, or at any other time on the
               Company's request, together with his written certification of
               compliance, except for those documents and objects received as a
               director of the Company.

     5.   Death or Disability of the Employee. The Employee's employment shall
          terminate immediately upon his death. In the event the Employee
          becomes physically or mentally disabled so as to qualify for
          disability payments under the then current disability coverage for
          full time employees of the Company, the Company may at its option
          terminate his employment upon not less than thirty (30) days written
          notice. The Company's right to terminate the Employee's employment
          pursuant to the preceding sentence shall cease in the event the notice
          of termination provided for therein shall not be given during the
          period of the Employee's disability or within ninety (90) days after
          such disability ceases. In the event of termination, the Company shall
          be obligated to pay the Employee's salary under paragraph 3 hereof,
          net of the gross amount of Long Term disability benefits received by
          the Employee, through the balance of the term of this Agreement and
          any then currently effective extension thereof.

     6.   Termination and Severance Compensation. The Company reserves the right
          to immediately terminate the Employee's employment under this
          agreement should any of the following occur:

          (a)  The Employee's commission of a felony that is an act which, in
               the opinion of the Board of Directors, is either abhorrent to the
               community or is an intentional act, which the Board of Directors
               considers materially damaging to the reputation of the Company or
               its successors or assigns.

          (b)  The Employee's breach of or failure to perform his obligations in
               accordance with the terms and conditions of this agreement.
               However the right of the Company to terminate the employment of
               the Employee under the terms of

                                                                          Page 3

<PAGE>

               this paragraph 6(b) shall be conditioned upon the Company
               promptly providing to the Employee a written notice which
               describes the Employee's breach of or failure to perform his
               obligations in accordance with the terms and conditions of this
               agreement. The Employee shall have thirty (30) days from the date
               of the Company's issuance of this notice to cure the described
               breach or failure. Notwithstanding the above described language,
               should the Company issue more than one (1) notice in any twelve
               (12) month period under the terms of this paragraph 6(b), the
               Employee shall have no cure rights for such breach or failure to
               perform.

          (c)  The death of the Employee.

          (d)  The disability of the Employee, as described in Section 5 above.

          Should the term of the Employee's employment with the Company be
          terminated pursuant to the terms of Sections 6(c), 6(d), 7, and 8
          herein, the Company shall pay to the Employee the Base Salary
          described in Section 3(a) for the balance of the then effective term
          of this Agreement.

     7.   Rights and Obligations of Successors. In the event that any of the
          following events occur, a "Change in Control" shall be deemed to occur
          for the purpose of this Agreement: (a) any person or group of persons
          acting in concert becomes the beneficial owner, directly or indirectly
          (excluding ownership by or through employee benefit plans), of
          securities of the Company representing fifty percent (50%) or more of
          the combined voting power of the Company's then outstanding
          securities; (b) the Company is combined (by merger, share exchange,
          consolidation, or otherwise) with another corporation and as a result
          of such combination less than seventy five percent (75%) of the
          outstanding securities of the surviving or resulting corporation are
          owned in the aggregate by the former shareholders of the Company; or
          (c) any person or group of persons acting in concert obtains direct or
          indirect control of the Board of Directors of the Company, other than
          the current shareholders of the Company. The Employee shall have the
          right to terminate his employment under the terms of this Agreement
          for a period of sixty (60) days following the Change in Control. In
          the event that the Employee shall not so elect to terminate this
          Agreement, then this agreement shall be assignable and transferable by
          the Company to any subsidiary or affiliate or to any subsidiary or
          affiliate of the Company affiliated with the Change in Control and
          shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the Employee and his
          heirs and personal representatives and the Company and its successors
          and assigns. In the event the Employee elects to terminate employment,
          the Employee shall be paid through the term of this Agreement and any
          then currently effective extension thereof.

     8.   Termination Rights of the Employee. Throughout the term of this
          Agreement, the Employee shall have the right to termination his
          employment with the Company, with or without cause, upon 180 days
          prior written notice. Such notice period shall extend to 270 days
          during the first six (6) months of employment of any newly hired chief
          executive officer of the Company. The terms of this Section

                                                                          Page 4

<PAGE>

          8 shall terminate three (3) years from the Effective Date of this
          Agreement.

     9.   Covenant Not to Compete. In consideration of the employment hereunder,
          the Employee hereby agrees that during the term of his employment by
          the Company and for the longer of (a) a period of twenty four (24)
          months following the termination of his employment with the Company,
          or (b) the length of time which the Employee receives base salary
          payments under this Agreement under the provisions of Section 6 of
          this Agreement, the Employee will not either directly or indirectly
          own, have proprietary interest (except for less than 5% of any listed
          company or company traded in the over-the-counter market) of any kind
          in, be employed by, or serve as a consultant to or in any other
          capacity for any firm, other than the Company and its subsidiaries,
          engaged in the manufacture and distribution of school supplies,
          equipment, furniture or other products made and distributed by the
          Company or any of the Company's present or future subsidiary
          corporations (acquired during the term of this Agreement) during the
          period of the Employee's employment in the area where they are engaged
          in business without the express written consent of the Company. The
          Employee agrees that a breach of the covenant contained herein will
          result in irreparable and continuing damage to the Company for which
          there will be no adequate remedy at law and in the event of any breach
          of such agreement, the Company shall be entitled to injunctive and
          such other and further relief including damages as may be proper.

     10.  Notice. All notices, demands and other communications hereunder shall
          be deemed to have been duly given, if delivered by hand or mailed,
          certified or registered mail with postage prepaid:

          To the Company:      School Specialty, Inc.
                               P.O. Box 1579
                               Appleton, WI 54912-1579
                               Attention: Mary Kabacinski, Chief Financial
                                          Officer
                               Fax: (920) 882-5863

          With a copy to:      Joseph F. Franzoi IV, Esq.
                               Franzoi & Franzoi, S.C.
                               514 Racine Street
                               Menasha, WI 54952
                               Fax: (920) 725-0998

          To Employee:         David J. Vander Zanden
                               W2810 Oakridge Drive
                               Appleton WI 54915

          or to such other address as the person to whom notice is to be given
          may have specified in a notice duly given to the sender as provided
          herein. Such notice, request, claim, demand, waiver, consent, approval
          or other communication shall be deemed to have been given as of the
          date so delivered, telefaxed, mailed or dispatched and, if given by
          any other means, shall be deemed given only when actually received by
          the addressees.

                                                                          Page 5

<PAGE>

     10.  Entire Agreement; Amendment; Waiver. This Agreement (including any
          documents referred to herein) sets forth the entire understanding of
          the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter contemplated
          hereby. Any and all previous agreements and understandings between or
          among the parties regarding the subject matter hereof, whether written
          or oral, are superseded by this Agreement. This Agreement shall not be
          amended or modified except by a written instrument duly executed by
          each of the parties hereto. Any extension or waiver by any party of
          any provision hereto shall be valid only if set forth in an instrument
          in writing signed on behalf of such party.

     11.  Expenses. Each party hereto will pay their respective fees, expenses
          and disbursements of their agents, representatives, accountants and
          counsel incurred in connection with the subject matter of this
          Agreement, and its enforcement.

     12.  Governing Law. This Agreement shall in all respects be construed
          according to the laws of the State of Wisconsin, without regard to its
          conflict of laws principles.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be
duly executed as of the date first written above.

                                        COMPANY:

                                        SCHOOL SPECIALTY, INC.

                                           /s/ Leo C. McKenna
                                        ----------------------------------------
                                        Leo C. McKenna,
                                        Interim Chairman of the Board

                                        EMPLOYEE:

                                          /s/ David J. Vander Zanden
                                        ----------------------------------------
                                        David J. Vander Zanden, Individually

                                                                          Page 6

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